Tang Zhuangling Mausoleum

Introducing Zhuangling Mausoleum of Tang Dynasty
Zhuangling Mausoleum lies 60 km (37 mi) north of downtown Xi'an's Bell Tower. Zhuangling Mausoleum is a Tang Dynasty (618-907) imperial tomb. Zhuangling Mausoleum is where Emperor Jingzong, the 13th emperor of the Tang Dynasty was buried. Emperor Jingzong was born on July 22, 809. He became the emperor of the Tang dynasty at the age of 15 after his father Emperor Muzong died on Jan 26, 824. He reigned from 824 to 827 and his short reign would be overshadowed by corrupt eunuchs with control over the imperial Shence Army, who would come to dominate his rule. Uninterested in ruling, Emperor Jingzong gave in to pleasure seeking and lived in opulence while eunuchs and other officials ran his administration. He enjoyed spending time playing polo. Realizing the danger of playing polo on horseback, he invented playing polo on donkeyback. He was keen on wrestling, boxing, and arrow shooting. He arranged his concubines standing in line and would shoot paper arrows with musk perfume wrapped in. The first lady hit by the arrow would be his pick for the night. He was extremely fond of hunting fox. On the night of Jan 9, 827, he returned to Daming Palace after a night fox hunting trip to Mount Lishan. He was assassinated by eunuchs that night in his bedroom. He died at the age of 18. Emperor Jingzong was buried at Zhuangling Mausoleum on July 13, 827.

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Zhuangling Mausoleum of Tang Dynasty Fast Facts
• Name in Chinese: Tang Zhuang Ling 唐庄陵
• Best Time to Visit: All year round
• Recommended Visiting Hours: 1 hour
• Distance from Xian: 60 km (37 mi)
• Opening Hours: All day
• Entrance Fee: Free
• Address: Chaiyao Village, Lingqian Township, Sanyuan County, Shaanxi Province
• Address in Chinese: 陕西省三原县陵前乡柴窑村东

What to expect at Zhuangling Mausoleum of Tang Dynasty
Instead of using existing mountain peaks as the tomb site, Zhuangling Mausoleum was built in the form of square base "pyramid", with a trapezoid, heaped burial mound. It is the second Tang Dynasty imperial tomb using an earthen burial mound as the emperor's final resting place, after the first Tang Emperor Gaozu's Xianling Mausoleum. Standing at 17 meters (56 ft), the base of this tomb is measured to be 57 meters (187 ft) square. The burial mound was surrounded by an inner wall, with a perimeter of 1,940 meters (6,365 ft). Four gates were opened on the inner wall's four cardinal directions, namely: south vermilion bird gate, north black tortoise gate, east azure dragon gate, and west white tiger gate. Each gate was guarded by two stone lions. Two sets of ceremonial gate towers were built outside the south vermilion bird gate, namely outer ceremonial gate tower symbolizing capital Chang'an's outer city and middle ceremonial gate tower representing Chang'an's royal city. Modeled after Emperor Xuanzong's Tailing Mausoleum, the spirit way was lined with a pair of ornamental columns, a pair of winged horses, a pair of ostriches, five pairs of saddled horses and 10 pairs of government officials (10 civil officials on the east and 10 military officials on the west). Today, only a few of the stone sculptures survived through the ages, the 8 guardian lions are still standing. Other surviving stone sculptures include two winged horses, two civil officials and one military official along the spirit way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to get to Zhuangling Mausoleum of Tang Dynasty
• Zhuangling Mausoleum lies 60 km (37 mi) north of downtown Xian's Bell Tower.
• There is no public transportation from Xian to Zhuangling Mausoleum.
• Rent a car/bus from GGC to enjoy a hassle free private transfer from hotels in Xian to Zhuangling Mausoleum.