Xixia Imperial Tombs, Yinchuan, China
Occupying an area of some 50 km2, the Western Xia tombs at the foot of the Helan Mountains in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region of northwestern China includes nine imperial mausoleums and 250 tombs of imperial relatives and officials.
This burial complex lies some 40 km westward from capital city of the Western Xia, the Xingqing fu or Xingqing, what is modern-day Yinchuan, capital of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. Some 17,000 m2 have so far been excavated, and efforts are underway to secure and preserve the remains of this poorly understood era.
The Western Xia dynasty, existed between 1038 and 1227, when it was conquered by the Mongols under Genghis Khan. The empire was founded by the Tangut ethnic group, about which little is currently known. Of current excavations, only the No.3 mausoleum has been adequately excavated and researched. This mausoleum is attributed to Western Xia’s first emperor Jingzong, born Li Yuanhao, has been determined as a pavilion-tower construction fusing both traditional mausoleum and temple styles with Buddhist characteristics.
Epic China Culture & Adventure Route © Monika Newbound
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