October 18, 2014
Saturday after the Xi’an YMCA’s 100th anniversary celebration, there was no program; people were free to leave according to their own schedules. I had arranged for a driver to take me to tour a section of Xi'an outside the urban area that contained several tombs, including that of Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in China's history.
The driver asked if his son could accompany us, as he wanted the 9-year old boy to practice speaking English. That was fine with me, though I didn't expect a child to really want to talk to a foreigner. At first, he was quite shy and wouldn't open his mouth, but after a while, we hit upon a method that worked, and I was quite happy the boy came along, though I spoke more Chinese than he did English. He and I toured the tomb areas, while his father waited at the car.
This is the entrance to one of the minor tombs; the grounds were nicely landscaped, with tomb relics displayed in side buildings.
I was able to enter three minor tombs of princes, which were open to the public. As tombs go, they were quite small and consisted of a single room at the bottom of a long steep ramp leading to the room with a large stone burial vault with carvings of symbolic designs. A coffin would have been inside, along with various relics thought to be indicative of the deceased person’s rank and wealth.
Each of the sites had side buildings that housed museum exhibits with historical information, most of which included English text on the descriptions.
The last tomb, that of Empress Wu, had not been opened, so the only things to see were the traditional stone road leading to the mound, almost a mountain, really, with its stone animals and guards lining the road. At the end were some monuments, two large gates, and standing stone troops, all of which had lost their heads to souvenir hunters.
The boy and I climbed the burial mound almost to the top, but the atmosphere was hazy and you couldn’t get a very good view. The driver took me back to the airport and I flew home to Nanjing, arriving late Saturday night.
This is the traditional approach to an imperial tomb. First come stone animals, two of which you see to the left, then come stone figures representing generals, officials, poets, and other important personages. At the end are more statues and monuments, beyond which is the tomb mound.
Wu Zetian (AD 624-705)
She started out at the age of fourteen as a lowly concubine of Emperor Tai Zong, the second, and one of the greatest, emperors of the Tang Dynasty, itself one of the greatest of the Chinese dynasties. While she was still part of his official household, she began an affair with one of his sons, Gao Zong (the family name of the Tang Dynasty emperors was Li, but they were each known as Emperor _____ Zong), and when he ascended the throne after his father’s death, she returned to the palace as chief concubine and then as his empress.
He expanded the Tang Dynasty territory to its greatest expanse, but as he grew older, he fell into ill health and many state affairs were handled by her. After his death, she wielded power behind the scenes through two weak emperors before claiming the throne herself in 690.
She was known for her beauty, talent for administration, and cruelty, though perhaps cruelty in a woman was more frowned on than in a man. She appointed capable people and her 16-year reign was known for peace and stability.
She was born in Guangyuan in Sichuan Province. This temple was built in her hometown in her honor. I visited it during the 2009 Amity Summer English Program there.
Including the years in which she exercised power in the names of her husband and the two succeeding emperors, and her own 16 years, she ruled the affairs of state for about 50 years.
At her death, she was buried with her husband, Li Zhi, known as Emperor Gao Zong, in the mound located about two hours from the city of Xi’an in an area called Qianling.
Travel with me on my outing through the photos below. Notice the little modern-day tomb robbers, picking up coins and small bills that people had thrown inside the vault cage for good luck. At least it brought good luck to these children!
