Chuning Tomb, Imperial tomb in Qilin, Nanjing, China.
Chuning Tomb is the burial site of Liu Yu, Emperor Wu of the Liu Song dynasty, who died in 422. The tomb mound is 15 metres high with a circumference of 42 metres. Two stone statues, a qilin and a tianlu, stand on either side of a road in Qilinpu, Qilin Subdistrict, Jiangning District, surrounded by village houses.
Liu Yu, founder of the Liu Song dynasty, died in May 422 and was buried in July of that year at Chuning Tomb, southeast of Jiangshan (today's Purple Mountain) in Jiankang, Danyang Commandery. Records describe a walled complex with a sleeping hall and ancestral temple, all destroyed in later wars. The tomb mound is 15 m high and 42 m around.
The two stone figures beside the road in Qilinpu are a qilin and a tianlu, mythical beasts that guarded the approach to the tomb. Some researchers attribute them instead to Liu Yu's son, Emperor Wen, whose Ning Tomb lies nearby. The tomb mound itself measures 15 metres high with a circumference of 42 metres.
The site is located in the Qilin district of Nanjing and protected as a Major Historical and Cultural Site at the national level. Visitors can walk through the area and view the stone statues from the street without needing any special equipment or preparation.
The two stone figures beside the road in Qilinpu are a qilin and a tianlu, not a matching pair. Some researchers argue they belong not to Chuning Tomb but to Changning Tomb, the burial of Liu Yu's son Emperor Wen. Contemporary records say Chuning Tomb was originally marked only by bamboo and wooden posts, possibly near Maqun in Qixia District.
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