Huangdi Mausoleum 黄帝陵

About Huangdi Mausoleum

The visit has two distinct settings: Xuanyuan Temple below the hill, with memorial inscriptions and ancient cypresses, and the wooded mausoleum enclosure above. The site’s meaning comes from centuries of ritual and cultural memory; it should not be described as an archaeologically verified burial of a historical individual. Following the temple before the hill makes that commemorative tradition easier to understand.

According to tradition the Yellow Emperor attained immortality and ascended to heaven, so the tomb is a robe-and-cap burial, and the Records of the Grand Historian states he was buried at Qiaoshan (桥山). A shrine for sacrificial rites was built in the fifth year of the Tang Dali era (770), after which the site became a place where emperors and noted figures of successive dynasties offered sacrifices to the Yellow Emperor.

The mausoleum scenic area covers 333 hectares and contains more than 60,000 ancient cypress trees, of which over 30,000 are more than a thousand years old, described as the best-preserved grove of old cypresses in China. It is divided into the tomb area and the Xuanyuan Temple (轩辕庙) area; the tomb itself, enclosed by a brick wall, is now 3.6 meters high with a circumference of 48 meters.

It was renovated repeatedly through successive dynasties, most recently from 1993. In 1961 the State Council had listed the mausoleum in the first group of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level, numbered 'Ancient Tomb No. 1'. Each Qingming festival the Shaanxi provincial government holds a public memorial ceremony for the Yellow Emperor at the site, and the associated sacrificial rite (黄帝陵祭典) is listed among the first group of national intangible cultural heritage.

What to look for

• Xuanyuan Temple’s cypress trees and inscription corridor, recording successive generations of commemoration.
• The Qiaoshan mausoleum enclosure and ceremonial pavilion in the wooded hilltop setting.

The surrounding area

A northern base for the revolutionary museum, Baota Mountain and separately located historic sites, with its own lamb and noodle traditions.

Location & getting there

Getting to Huangdi Mausoleum

Go to the Huangdi Mausoleum scenic area at Qiaoshan, immediately north of Huangling County town.

• Begin at the lower Xuanyuan Temple area and check the current connection to the hilltop mausoleum before ascending.