Hometown of Emperor Yan 炎帝故里

About Hometown of Emperor Yan

The scenic area lies about eighteen kilometres from the Suizhou urban area and covers 20.39 square kilometres, of which a core zone of nearly 3.4 square kilometres holds most of the building; the county government counts more than sixty separate sites within it. Its oldest elements are a cave called Shennong Dong, held to be the place where Yandi Shennong was born; the Shennong temple, whose foundation is traced to the reign of King Zhuang of Chu; and a stele marking the Yandi Shennong site, set up in the Wanli reign of the Ming dynasty.

The place functions as a centre of living ritual as much as a monument. Both the body of Yandi Shennong legends and the Suizhou Shennong sacrificial rite performed here are inscribed on China's national list of intangible cultural heritage, and the site hosts a root-seeking festival for Chinese people worldwide. The county government treats the area as one part of a wider cultural zone that also takes in the Suizhou museum and the Leigudun tomb group, so the scenic area itself should not be confused with those separate sites.

What to look for

• Shennong Dong, the cave identified as the birthplace of Yandi Shennong
• The Shennong temple, whose foundation is traced to the reign of King Zhuang of Chu
• The stele marking the Yandi Shennong site, erected during the Wanli reign of the Ming dynasty
• The ritual ground used for the Suizhou Shennong sacrificial rite, a national intangible cultural heritage practice
• The core zone of nearly 3.4 square kilometres, where most of the scenic area's sixty-odd sites are concentrated

Location & getting there

Getting to Hometown of Emperor Yan

Check which interiors and courtyards are accessible. Active places of worship and protected monuments may have different visitor rules.

• Search for 炎帝故里 with 随州市 and 随县.