Tomb of Puhaddin, Cemetery in Yangzhou, China.
The Tomb of Puhaddin covers 10,000 square metres and is divided into a cemetery and a mosque. The cemetery gate bears the inscription "Tomb of the Western Sage Puhaddin"; the square tomb chamber, 5.9 metres on each side, has arched doorways, a brick vault and whitewashed walls, topped by a Chinese-style four-cornered roof with a gourd-shaped finial. Thirty smaller tomb pavilions and a 1984 stele pavilion holding four Yuan-dynasty Arab gravestones stand nearby.
Puhaddin, a 16th-generation descendant of Muhammad, came to Yangzhou between 1265 and 1274 and died there in 1275. The prefect Yuan Guang'en had him buried here by his own wish, and the people raised a stone tomb tower, stele and pavilion. The tomb was honored as a national treasure under the Ming Yongle emperor; the present buildings are mostly Qing, repaired with donations in 1726, 1776, 1845 and 1900.
The mausoleum displays inscriptions in both Chinese and Persian languages, showing how different civilizations met and exchanged ideas during medieval times in this city. These two language traditions appear together on the stones, telling the story of the merchants and travelers who passed through.
The tomb lies in Guangling District, east of Yangzhou's old centre, on the east bank of the Grand Canal, with the mosque south of the entrance arch and the cemetery up the eastern steps. It was listed as a provincial protected site in 1957, re-listed in 1982, and became a national protected site in 2005. The garden east of the cemetery, formerly East Suburb Park, was placed under the Yangzhou Islamic Association in 1987.
The tomb chamber's brick dome is capped with Chinese tubular tiles and a gourd-shaped porcelain finial, while its four corners carry carved beast heads and dragon motifs. Islamic teaching forbids such images in religious buildings, but local custom required them.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,008 contributors worldwide.