Eastern Qing Tombs Yuling Mausoleum

In 1742, the Qianlong Emperor selected a quiet valley in Shengshuiyu to build his final resting place. Construction began on the tenth day of the second lunar month in 1743. Along the sacred way, eight pairs of stone statues—including silent elephants, camels, and civil officials—stand guard. Nearby, the Sacred Virtues and Divine Merits Stele Pavilion houses twin steles. The Jiaqing Emperor wrote the words, and Prince Cheng executed the Chinese calligraphy, his brushstrokes preserved in stone.

Fifty-four meters beneath the earth lies the heart of the mausoleum: a three-hundred and seventy-two square meter underground palace. Built of heavy, cold white marble without a single beam or column, this vaulted sanctuary is organized into nine vaults and four gates. The walls are carved with over three thousand Buddhist images, including the Four Heavenly Kings and the Eight Bodhisattvas. Over thirty thousand Tibetan and Sanskrit characters cover the stone ceilings, wrapping the dead in sacred texts.

Here, on a stone Sumeru throne platform, rest the coffins of the emperor, Empress Xiaoxianchun, Empress Xiaoyichun, and three noble consorts.Today, visitors can walk down the damp stone passage, touch the scarred marble doors, and read the ancient Sanskrit characters.