Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum
Sacred Way stone animals guarding the tomb of the Ming founder.
Visitor info
- Opening hours
- 06:30-18:00
- Ticket
- 70 CNY
- Suggested visit
- 2 hours
Price is indicative — final quote on inquiry.
Why it's worth it
The tomb of Zhu Yuanzhang, the Ming founder — buried under a green mound since 1398, fronted by the Elephant Road: 600 metres of stone camels, elephants, lions and generals that have become Nanjing's signature photograph.
Don't miss
- Elephant Road at golden hour — six species of stone animals under 600-year-old trees
- The plum blossom hill beside the sacred way in late February, when the whole slope blooms
- The Square City pavilion's stele, carried by a stone tortoise the size of a car
Getting there
Inside the Zhongshan scenic area; from Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum follow signs west about 20 minutes on foot or take the shuttle.
Tips
- The combined scenic-area ticket covers both mausoleums; the shuttle between them saves 30 minutes
- Come for plum season (late Feb-mid Mar) if timing allows — it's the city's calendar event
- The tomb mound itself is unexcavated and unenterable — the approach is the monument
Photos
More in Nanjing
- Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum
392 marble steps up Purple Mountain to the father of modern China.
- Confucius Temple (Fuzimiao)
Qinhuai River lantern district; night cruise past painted boats.
- Zhonghua Gate
The world's largest castle-style city gate, 27 soldier hideouts inside.
- Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum
The mausoleum of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, begun in 1926 with his remains interred in 1929. The "Liberty Bell" ground plan by young architect Lü Yanzhi won a global design competition, a milestone of modern Chinese architectural history.
- Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum
The joint tomb of Ming founder Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma, begun in 1381. It pioneered the "court in front, resting quarters behind" mausoleum layout, the wellspring of the Ming-Qing imperial tomb system; in 2003 it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the extension of the Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
- Linggu Temple
An ancient temple at the southern foot of Purple Mountain, descended from the Liang-dynasty Kaishan Temple; relocated and renamed Linggu Temple in the early Ming, its old view "Deep Pines of Linggu" was listed among the Forty-Eight Scenes of Jinling.