Mausoleum of the Yellow Emperor

The Mausoleum of the Yellow Emperor is located in Qiaoshan Mountain in the north of Huangling County, Shaanxi Province.

The name of the Yellow Emperor was Xuan Yuan, who was said to be the chieftain of the clan tribe in remote ancient times, and is esteemed as the ancestor of the Huaxia nation. The mausoleum was said to be built as a sacrificial altar by Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD), who went by the place on a punitive expedition to Shuofang. It was repaired in the following dynasties without exception.

Now the Mausoleum of the Yellow Emperor is 3.6 meters high with a circumference of 48 meters. In front of the grave stands a stele pavilion, sheltering the Qiaoling Dragon-Carriage Stele and The Qiaoling Stele of Old Xuan Yuan Yellow Emperor. It was established by Shaanxi imperial inspector Bi Ruan in the 41st year (1776) of the Qianlong reign. To the south of the mausoleum, there is the divine estrade of Han Emperor Wudi, by the side of which stands a stone stele recording the historical anecdotes of Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty when he constructed the estrade and prayed to the God here. The Yellow Emperor Temple is at the foot of the mountain, where stand the buildings such as the temple gate and halls. There is also a luxuriant forest of old cypresses that keep out the sunlight. There stands a tree of 19 meters tall with a 10-meter-long circumference. It is said that the so-called Cypress Champion was planted by Emperor Wudi in person.

Since the ancient times, there have been the saying of eight sceneries in the area of the Mausoleum of the Yellow Emperor, and they are Night Moon over Qiaoshan Mountain, Autumn Wind Blows Ju River, Yellow Flowers in Yellow Valley, North Rock in Clean Snow, Dawn Fog at Dragon Bay, Spring Fog at Phoenix Peak, Devine Estrade of Emperor Wudi, and Xuan Yuan Old Temple. The Xuan Yuan temple is the best sight in the Qiaoshan Mountain scenic area.

The Yellow Emperor also has mausoleums in Gansu, Hebei and Henan provinces. According to historical documents such as Shi Ji-the Biography of Five Emperors, after the death of the Yellow Emperor, he was buried in Qiaoshan Mountain, so people feted the Yellow Emperor in this place in the past dynasties.