Beijing, July 16 (EFE).- China plans to open to the public over the next six years the 13 imperial tombs of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), part of one of the largest and best preserved funeral complexes in the world, located on the outskirts of Beijing.
The initiative, announced during the last Cultural Forum on the Ming Dynasty, will be divided into three phases during the first of which, between this year and next, the Siling and Yongling tombs, belonging to the 11th and 16th emperors of that time, will be opened.
From 2026 to 2028, those responsible for the complex want to continue with the Maoling, Tailing and Deling tombs, which keep the remains of the eighth, ninth and 15th emperors, and between 2029 and 2030 the Xianling, Yuling and Qingling tombs, belonging to the fourth, sixth and 14th emperors.
The work will also include the opening of the ruins of a palace where the emperors stayed when they came to this place to visit the last resting place of their ancestors, as well as the improvement of the roads that lead to the place.
Only three of the Ming tombs in the complex, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2003, are currently open.
According to a representative of the enclave cited by the Global Times newspaper, once all the tombs are open to the public, exhibitions will be scheduled on the construction process of the tombs and their architectural particularities.
The historical site houses the remains of 13 emperors, 23 empresses, two princesses and 30 concubines of the Ming period, among which the body of the last emperor of that dynasty, Chongzhen, who committed suicide.
The construction of the complex dates back to 1409, during the reign of the Yongle Emperor, and lasted for 230 years.
In 2018 it was announced that the ambitious work of restoring the tombs would involve the eviction of 15,000 people, many of them descendants of the former guardians of those mausoleums and who were expected to be moved to an «ecological community.» EFE
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