The Sui Yangdi Tomb is located in the northern suburbs of Yangzhou, constructed by later generations in imitation of the architectural style of the Sui Dynasty. Though somewhat imposing, the tomb is not large in scale, failing to meet the standards of an imperial mausoleum. Its remote location results in sparse visitors, leaving the imperial tomb in a desolate state, which may evoke more sighs and reflections on the controversial life of the emperor. At the end of the Sui Dynasty, Yu Huhua initiated a military coup in Yangzhou, forcing Emperor Yang Guang to his death, and he was buried under the Liuzhu Hall of Jiangdu Palace. After the Tang Dynasty pacified the Jiangnan region, he was reinterred with imperial honors 4 kilometers north of present-day Yangzhou City, on the southern ridge of Leitang. This is the origin of the Sui Yangdi Tomb. The tomb was later destroyed, and it wasn’t until the twelfth year of the Jiaqing Emperor’s reign (1807) that the scholar Ruan Yuan erected a monument and built a stone tablet, with the prefect of Yangzhou, Yi Bingshou, inscribing ‘Sui Yangdi Tomb’ in clerical script. The tomb complex, from south to north, includes a stone archway, tomb gate, Leitang, stone bridge, altar, spirit way, city walls, stone towers, and tomb mound. The tomb mound is a very neat flat-topped pyramid shape, 12 meters high, with all four sides being regular isosceles trapezoids. Inside the two side halls of the tomb area, one displays historical materials about the life of Sui Yangdi, and the other is an exhibition room for calligraphy and painting, showcasing works by well-known calligraphers and painters from Jiangsu Province and Yangzhou City. With the discovery of another suspected tomb of Sui Yangdi in Caozhuang, Situ Village, Xihua Town, Yangzhou, the authenticity of the Sui Yangdi Tomb in Huai’er Village, Huaisu Town, Yangzhou, has been questioned. However, since this tomb, restored by Ruan Yuan in the Qing Dynasty, is still a cultural relic, it is worth visiting to recall the tumultuous history of the Sui Dynasty, which reached its peak under Emperor Yang and declined under his rule. The tomb is open all year round from 08:30 to 17:00.
Sui Yangdi Tomb
The Sui Yangdi Tomb is located in the northern suburbs of Yangzhou, constructed by later generations[...]
