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| Your location: Home / Travel attraction / Mausoleum of Western Han Emperor Liu Qi (Hanyangling) |
| Mausoleum of Western Han Emperor Liu Qi (Hanyangling) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Han Yangling Referring to Hanyangling as "Oriental Venus" is no exaggeration. The tomb has almost certainly been identified by the dicovery of 40,000 burial objects, including cavalrymen, infantrymen, painted nude pottery figurines, utensils, chariots, weapons, and a large number of pottery animals. These excavations have brought history back to the public for a second time, following after Qin's Terracotta Warriors and Horses. Archaeological finds have proved it is the most well-preserved and integrated Western Han Imperial Mauseloum. Located in the eastern part of Xianyang City, about 20 kilometers from both Xian and Xianyang International Airport, it's easy for visitors to find. Construction of the mausoleum took 28 years, beginning in 153 B.C. and ending when the empress died. The mausoleum covers an area of more than 10 square kilometers - nearly six kilometers east to west, and up to three kilometers north to south. The tomb complex is symmetrically constructed with the sacred road from east to west. Yang Ling mausoleum, standing at the western end of the sacred road, is about 32 meters high with circumferences of 670 meters and 238 meters at the bottom and top respectively. It looks like a topless pyramid. Beside it is the tomb of the Empress. In ancient China it was the custom that an Empress, although she held much power, be buried separately from her husband. Around the mausoleum in all directions are 81 satellite tombs different sizes. From these tombs we have unearthed approximately 60,000 burial objects, including painted nude pottery figurines, utensils, chariots, weapons, and a large number of pottery animals. Also discovered was the largest human sacrifice graveyard ever found in China. A total of 5,000 sacrificial burial tombs have been verified, and the graveyard covers a total area of 3.5 square km. Han figurines were first modeled as nude bodies, then painted with hair and skin, fitted with movable wooded arms and hands, and finally covered with beautiful clothes before being buried. Over the centuries, the clothing was damaged and the wooden arms rotted. But the colors remain as bright as when they were first painted. The figurines, including cavalrymen, infantrymen, court maids, and servants, are 62 centimeters tall. They have (male or female) sex organs, navels and all the functional bodily orifices. With different facial expressions, these pottery figures look relaxed but dignified. The animal figurines include strong and tough cattle, shrewd dogs, glazed cocks and hens, pigs, and sheep all made in a vivid and lively style.
Naked Figurines of Han Yangling The Shaanxi Provincial People's Government made public the details of the partial excavation of the Yangling Tomb of the Western Han Dynasty on September 16, 1999. The Yangling Tomb, a Western Han (202 B.C.-16 A.D.) imperial mausoleum that had been undisturbed for about 2,100 years, has been excavated partially. Found in the tomb were color-painted nude pottery figurines, and 90 large subordinate burial pits around it, covering an area of more than 7,000 square meters. In these pits, a large number of cultural relics were found. Also discovered was Some 40 kilometers away from the Emperor Qin Shihuang's mausoleum stands a huge mound. This is Han Yangling, tomb of the fourth emperor Liu Qi of the Western Han (206 B.C.-26 A.D.).
Naked Figurines Mysteries have accompanied the excavation work since the 1990s. Several thousand pottery figurines have been unearthed from the site. But, those human figurines, men and women, were all naked. About 60 centimeters high, they were painted in salmon pink with true-to-life features including genitals and bellybuttons. But, archeological workers couldn't find their arms.
When more warrior figurines were discovered, the answer was found. Traces of loricae and cloth were discovered on their surfaces, indicating those human figurines were once dressed in beautiful clothes or loricaes when they were buried. With mini-sized iron weaponry, the cavalrymen were riding wooden horses. The holes on the pottery figurines arms were used to fix in wooden arms making them movable as today's dolls. However, over the course of time, the clothes and wood arms decayed, leaving the figurines naked and armless.
The figurines used to wear gorgeous garments. But more questions have arisen. In Emperor Liu Qi's underworld army, there was a group of pretty girls. Some of them were in the cavalry. Though most of the girls were beautiful and had good figures, a few were unspeakably ugly with weirdly protruding cheekbones. Compared with Emperor Qin's terracotta soldiers, Liu Qi's were smaller and less solemn. They were more like preparing for a dancing than for a battle. That might represent the peaceful environment the emperor enjoyed during his rule.. A Glimpse of the Han Warriors To learn about the military strength of the Han Dynasty, a tomb, presumably belonging to Liu Qi's general in Xianyang, Shaanxi province makes for a good witness.
Some 1,965 strong pottery infantry figures and 588 cavalry figures were unearthed. The infantry and cavalry were placed in different tunnels, indicating the cavalry was an independent arm of service at the time. Historical records show that cavalry was a vital force in frontier defense in the time when nomadic ethnic people in Northern and Northwestern China posed major threats to the inner land. The Han emperor mobilized a 100,000-strong cavalry in a war with the Huns. In another batch of terracotta warriors and horses excavated from a tomb in Xuzhou, Zhejiang province, the sculptural art of the Han Dynasty reveals its delicacy and attention to details. It seems that from those vivid figurines today's visitors could get into the inner world of those soldiers and feel their happiness, worries and sorrows. Entertaining an Ever-Silent Audience
In the mid and late Western Han, the economy recovered and began to prosper. The change was readily reflected in the tomb figurines. The aristocrats took figurines of dancers, singers, bands and even acrobatic troupes to their tombs. In addition, farming human figurines and domestic animals were also found. The following Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 A.D.) brought the luxury to another height. The tombs were larger with more funeral objects. Chengdu is one of the most leisurely free cities in today's China, boasting of ubiquitous teahouses dotting almost every street. But 2,000 years ago in Eastern Han, the grass-root culture of the city was no inferior to today.
This is a figurine of a singer unearthed in Tianhuishan of Chengdu. Some 55 centimeters high, the shirtless singer, beating a drum in his left arm, was so happy in his performance that he unconsciously raised his right leg. The craftsmen didn't follow the beaten track of realistic presentation; instead, they used exaggerations to highlight the most unique features of people. Such figurines can be found in tombs of the Eastern Han Dynasty in other places.
In Mawangdui Han Tomb, several lady figurines in silk clothes were uncovered. They were servants to an aristocratic lady Xinzhui, whose body has been so well-preserved over 2,000 years that researchers were able to perform an autopsy on her body. Among those wooden figurines, one was particularly charming. With delicate makeup, the lady figurine was wearing a smile similar to Mona Lisa. Did the emperors have such beautiful maids in his palace? In the caves near Emperor Liu Qi's mausoleum, some special figurines were discovered. Among them, two naked pottery figurines were without scrotums. They were probably the earliest image of the palace eunuchs. Eunuchs and court ladies were responsible for the daily life of emperors in ancient China. In our imagination, the palace life must be extravagant. But burial figurines have proved that this might not be true. The concept of richness was quite different from today's. The 92-meter-long No. 13 cave is the emperor's storehouse in the afterlife. His most prized possessions were 2,000 animal pottery figurines, including 231 goats, 33 sheep, 456 dogs and pig, and roosters and hens.
Judging from the figurines, the court ladies, submissive and pretty, wore simple clothes without flamboyant decorations. Their long hair was combed at the back and coiled up at the end. Without any jewelry, the ladies wore long and loose skirts which had a waistline, showcasing their curvaceous figures. Figurines of Honor Guards
This bronze figurine captures a dream-like moment. A horse is running so fast that its hoof steps on a flying bird. In great shock, the fleeing bird turns its head to see what has happened.
The figurine came from a tomb in Wuwei, Gansu province about 2000 kilometers away from Beijing. In 1969, local villagers discovered this tomb when digging bomb shelters. More than 200 pieces of gold, silver, jade, pottery, and bronze wares were excavated. The most eye-catching were a procession of 99 bronze honor guards, horses and carts. They were made with such true-to-life craftsmanship that some of the rear doors of the carriage can even open. Though the occupant of the tomb remains unknown, the procession shows the man was by no means ordinary. Currently, Hanyangling is still in the process of excavations. This means that with each future visit there will be more and more for you to see! Addreess: East of Airport Highway
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the largest human sacrifice graveyard ever found in China up to now. A total of 5,000 sacrificial burial tombs have been verified, and the graveyard covers a total area of 3.5 square km. From the excavated 280 sacrificial tombs, more than 5,000 pieces and sets of various kinds of cultural relics were unearthed. 
