Maoling, the tomb of Emperor Wudi (140 B.C. - 87 B.C.) - Liu Che, the fifth emperor of the Western Han is located about 45 kilometers from Xi an.

Emperor Wudi of the Western Han

Emperor Wudi ascended the throne at 16 and was in power for 54 years. He was always mentioned with Emperor Qin Shihuang who established the autocratic state of centralized power in the feudal society for his thoroughly consolidation on it. In 112 B.C., he revoked the titles of 106 seigniors. He realized the malpractice of eupatrid and established the Imperial College to train qualified officials and talents to strengthen feudal centralization. Meanwhile he also advocated statism in the fields of finance and commerce. For example, he announced that only the coins minted by the central government could be in circulation; metallurgy and salt processing were also forbidden among the people. Business run by the government enjoyed an exclusive right and the government imposed heavy property tax on industrialists and businessmen to enhance the income of the court. The Western Han dynasty became unprecedented rich and powerful, centralization strengthened and its feudal economy flourished. Emperor Han Wudi launched battles against the barbarian invaders on the northern border. In 138 B.C., He appointed Zhang Qian - Chinese ambassador- extraordinary to journey westward into Central Asia and opened the historic Silk Road and established the first cross-cultural exchanges between East and West.

Emperor Han Wudi was not only a statesman but also of great talent. "Yuefu" - an official conservatory was set up to collect folk songs and ballads and most of the folk songs in the Han were come down from that period. Yuefu poems had a great influence on later periods. Emperor Han Wudi accepted Dong Zhongru's proposal of "rejecting the other schools of thought and respecting only Confucianism" which ended the period of "contention among one hundred schools of thought". Afterwards, Confucian thought became gradually an orthodox theory and had a far-reaching influence on Chinese philosophy.

Wudi died at 71 and was buried in Maoling. His tomb was a subulate in shape with a flathead 39.5 in wide 35.5 in length. The tomb covers 54,054 square meters. On the remains of the bounding walls, the vestiges of watchtowers could be seen. The largest among the tombs of the Western Han, with richest funeral objects, the tomb spent one third of yearly taxes and tributes of the state. The tomb became a focus and over 20 satellite tombs of officials and nobles were around the tomb. In that days, officials and nobles moved to the nearby with great honor. Dwelling houses inhabited by tomb keepers and court attendants were also built around the tomb.

Excavations from the tomb include large collections of buried objects and building materials. Eave tiles, Han bricks, pottery figures and other valuable historical relics as well as grandeur stone carvings originally placed in front of Huo Qubing' tomb, are now on display.

Admission: 12 (RMB)