Brief information on Qianling Mausoleum  

Qianling Mausoleum is situated some 80 kilometers away from Xian, on a stone mountain named Mt. Liangshan. It is the joint tomb of Emperor Gaozong, the third emperor of Tang Dynasty, and his empress Wu Zetian, the only Queen in Chinese history.

The majestic Qianling Mausoleum was established in 684 and took 23 years to complete.  According to various archaeological surveys, Qianling is one of the most well-preserved tombs among the 18 Tang Dynasty mausoleums and, interestingly, it has never been raided or robbed.  In front of the mound, there is a sacred way with 124 exquisite stone statues. Outside the south gate of the mausoleum, there are two tall tablets: A tablet dedicated to the Holy Deeds of Emperor Gaozong and the wordless tablet dedicated to Wu Zetian. The wordless tablet is unusual among those at imperial mausoleums in China. It was left blank in order that later generations would be free to give their appraisal of China’s only Queen.

Qianling Mausoleum is surrounded by 17 satellite tombs, including prince’s tombs, princess’ tombs and minister’s tombs, among which the tomb of Princess Yongtai, the tombs of Crown Prince Zhanghuai and Yide, tomb of the ancient Head of the secretariat, Xue Yuanchao and the tomb of Yan Guogong were excavated. Thousands of valuable cultural relics were unearthed, such as murals, pottery, wooden figurines and copper-ware.

As a unique mausoleum of two emperors, Qianling is a typical mountain mausoleum and is renowned all over the world.

*You can download the bilingual note to show it to a taxi driver or someone else to find your way to Qianling Mausoleum if you plan to visit Qianling Mausoleum and have language problems.

   

Chinese Pinyin: Qian Ling
Opening Times: 08:00-18:00
Ticket Price: CNY 70 in peak season, CNY 40 in off season
Location: Xianyang City