The
mausoleum lies at the northern foot of Mount Zijin (Mount Purple Gold).
Legend says that in order to prevent robbery of the tomb, 13 same processions
of funeral troops started from 13 city gates to cover the real burying
site. The construction of the mausoleum began in 1381 and ended in 1405,
taking 100 thousand labors 25 years with huge amount of expenditure. The
original wall of the mausoleum was more than 22.5 kilometers. Under heavy
guard of 5,000 military troops, the mausoleum was heavily constructed
and planted.
The sacred way started from Sifangchang (Rectangular city) which was a pavilion where a splendid carved stone stele for memory of Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang was enshrined, on which hymn by his fourth son was inscribed. Now, the top of the pavilion was gone. In the middle of the 1800-meter-long winding sacred way, there are 6 kinds and 12 pairs of animals guarding the tomb. Further beyond is a pair of decorative columns called Huabiao in Chinese. Four couples of ministers and generals have been standing there for centuries to accompany their His Majesty beneath.
On an inscribed stone tablet outside of the
gate of the mausoleum, an official notification of the local government
in the Qing dynasty(1644-1911) ordered to protect the tomb. Inside of
the gate, there is a pavilion in which 5 steles stand. The one in the
middle was inscribed with 4 Chinese characters, which was written by Emperor
Kangxi in his third inspection tour. Behind the pavilion, there used to
be other annexes, however most of them collapsed into relics from which
the original splendor can still be traced.
The clay vault, which is 400 meters in diameter, is where the emperor and his queen were buried. On stonewall surrounding the vault, 7 Chinese characters was inscribed, which means the mausoleum of Emperor Ming Taizu (respected title of Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang). By the way, the mountain laying to the south of the tomb is the mausoleum of Sun Quan, King of State Wu in the Three Kingdom period(220-265). It is the reason why the sacred way is not straight.
Opening Times: 7:00 - 18:00
Admission: 50 (RMB)