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October 14, 2015

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Zhongshan park steeped in history

ENJOYING a nice geographic location in all ages, Zhongshan Mountain in east China’s Jiangsu Province not only boasts picturesque mountain views, but also owns abundant historical heritages. Covering an area of 31 square kilometers, Zhongshan Mountain National Park in Nanjing City consists of three major scenic areas — Dr Sun Yat-sen’s Mausoleum, the Ming Tomb and Linggu Temple.

Dr Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925) was a revolutionary leader partly responsible for the downfall of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). His mausoleum, built from 1926 to 1929, is an architectural masterpiece from the Republic of China (1912-1949) era as it resembles a bell, symbolizing Dr Sun Yat-sen’s famous saying, “The alarm bell is ringing all the time to rouse the people.”

The mausoleum’s Open-air Musical Hall was jointly designed by Guan Songsheng and Yang Tingbao. It’s surrounded by wisteria shrubs, trees and flowers, a semicircular stage, crescent lotus pool, music fountains and fan-shaped sloping lawn auditorium.

The Ming Tomb is where Zhu Yuanzhang, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and his wife Ma Xiuying rest. Originally built in 1381, this tomb is one of the largest ancient imperial mausoleums remaining in China. The general layout of the tomb is well preserved and the main buildings remain unchanged for more than 600 years.

They include the Imperial Tablet Hall, the Rectangular Citadel, the Ming Tower and the Tomb Mound. Not far from the Sacred Path is the grave of Sun Quan (AD 182-252), the great emperor of the Eastern Wu Kingdom (AD 222-280). This spot is now more widely known as Plum Blossom Hill as more than 35,000 plum trees have been planted there.

The last major scenic area of the national park is Linggu Scenic Area. This area is named after Linggu Temple, which was later converted to a public cemetery by Kuomingtang for martyrs died in the revolutionary war to topple down the regime of Qing Dynasty.




 

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