A Great Suburban Self-Driving Destination: King Ling of Zhou's Tomb in Luoyang, 300 Years Older than Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum

Recently, the news of the upgrade and renovation of Congzhengfang and Datongfang parks in Luoyang has brought joy to the citizens, as after completion, these two urban parks full of poetry and wild charm will add great places for citizens and tourists to get close to nature.

In Luoyang, there has always been a large public park that locals are proud of, built on the basis of King Ling of Zhou's Tomb and the Three Kings of Zhou Tombs—Zhoushan Forest Park.

It is astonishing that a city uses a group of royal tombs as a park. In Luoyang, Zhoushan Forest Park is such a park.

Those who have visited say that the entire forest park is covered by more than 249,000 trees, including cedar, cypress, goldenrain tree, ginkgo, five-pointed maple, glossy privet, golden leaf locust, red maple, phoenix tree, and dawn redwood. These trees grow freely along the mountain slopes, with flowers competing in spring, lush greenery in summer, colorful hues in autumn, and an ink-wash painting in winter—the scenery is breathtaking.

King Ling of Zhou's Tomb is located in the Zhoushan area of Luoyang. During archaeological research, Chinese historians discovered that King Ling of Zhou's Tomb is considered the earliest recorded royal tomb in China, known as the 'First Royal Tomb of China.'

In fact, on Zhoushan, west of Sanshan Village in Luoyang High-tech Development Zone, there are four towering tombs standing majestically. The westernmost one, which looks magnificent, is King Ling of Zhou's Tomb, and beside it are three others, said to be the tombs of three other kings of the Zhou Dynasty.

King Ling of Zhou's Tomb is inverted-frustum-shaped and relatively well-preserved. About 600 meters east of it, three large mounds are closely connected from east to west, known as the 'Three Kings of Zhou Tombs,' traditionally believed to be the resting places of King Jing, King Dao, and King Ding. These three tombs are shaped like the character '山,' relatively intact, all inverted-frustum in shape, built with rammed earth, with clear corners at the turns of the mound and relatively flat tops.

Sanshan Village, east of Zhoushan, is also related to King Ling of Zhou's Tomb. Legend has it that after the royal tombs were gradually built and put into use, tomb guards were left each time, and these guards were the original inhabitants of Sanshan. At that time, they huddled together, cultivated and lived self-sufficiently in Zhou Valley at the foot of the mountain, coexisting with the Three Kings Tombs. Through generations, a village gradually formed, named Sanshan.

Currently, these four royal tombs are all municipal-level key protected units.

According to historical records, from 770 BC to 256 BC, the Zhou Dynasty lasted over 500 years from its rise to its fall. These tombs should be considered the earliest in the early to mid-Warring States period, and also the places where Zhou kings were buried during that time. They have a long history.

This history witnesses the rise and fall of the Zhou Dynasty. Today, the newly installed antique-style landscape street lamps on both sides of the walking paths in Zhoushan Forest Park are full of ancient charm, with each lamp box printed with poems and allusions about 'Luoyang' and 'Zhou culture.' Citizens who take photos, exercise, practice musical instruments, or chat in the shade can learn some historical stories and enhance their cultural knowledge.

According to the 'Commentary on the Water Classic': 'The Luo River flows through Zhoushan, on which lies King Ling of Zhou's Tomb.' In 2002, to clarify the shape, scale, and age of the Zhoushan royal tombs, archaeologists conducted surveys and investigations in coordination with the construction of Zhoushan Forest Park.

The results showed that the four tombs are all shaped like '甲' or '亞' in plan, identical to the shapes of large Eastern Zhou tombs found in the Eastern Zhou royal city and the Chengzhou tomb area. Thus, the historical records are not false.

This is Luoyang's Zhoushan Park, built on the royal tomb group. Perhaps only a city as profound as Luoyang can afford such luxury. Interested friends might want to come and see.