Leading to imperial tombs, there is usually a Sacred Way, which means 'the road leading to heaven'. The emperor, known as the Son of the Heaven, would return to Heaven through this road. Among the many Sacred Ways, the one at the Ming Tombs is the best preserved and most complete.
The Sacred Way (Shen Dao) is not to be missed. The path, slightly curved to fool evil spirits, is lined on either side with willows and remarkable carved stone animals and human figures, considered among the best in China.
The statuary along the Sacred Way includes pairs of camels, lions, elephants, and mythical beasts, such as the qilin, a creature of immense virtue referred to as the 'chinese unicorn' even though it has two horns.
The stone statues along the Sacred Way are important decorations of the mausoleum that form a guard of honor. These statues are usually 12 human figures (including the general, civil officials and meritorious officials) and 24 animals.
The animals are the lion, camel, elephant, xiezhi (a mythological unicorn), qilin (one of the four 'divine' animals, the other three are dragon, phoenix and tortoise) and horse.
There are 4 of each of these animals: two standing and two sitting. The lion symbolizes awesome solemnity because of its ferocity. The camel and elephant suggest the vastness of the territory controlled by the imperial court, because they are dependable transport in desert and tropical regions. The xiezhi is said to possess a sixth sense to tell right and wrong and so protects against evil. The qilin, an auspicious symbol, was placed on two sides. The horse, as the emperor's mount, is absolutely indispensable.
After the 18 pairs of stone statues which are all sculpted from whole stones, and larger than life size, comes the Dragon and Phoenix Gate.
The Dragon and Pheonix Gate
The main Sacred Way was built to lead to the ChangLing mausoleum. The statues here were erected between 1436 and 1438. Afterwards, twelve more mausoleums were built. The other Sacred Ways here are branches of the ChangLing Sacred Way.
Admission to the Sacred Way: Apr-Nov 30 yuan, Dec-Mar 20 yuan; daily, 8am till dusk.
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