The Cemetery of Confucius

Located north of the historic walled city of Qufu, about two kilometers north of the Temple and Mansion of Confucius, the Cemetery of Confucius, also known under its Chinese name Kong Lin, is a cemetery of the Kong clan (the descendants of Confucius) in Confucius' hometown Qufu. Confucius himself and some of his disciples are buried there, as well as many thousands of his descendants.

The cemetery occupies 183.33 hectares, and is surrounded by a perimeter wall 5,591 m long. Since 1994, the Cemetery of Confucius has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion in Qufu". The two other components of the site are the Temple of Confucius dedicated to the memory of the philosopher and the Kong Family Mansion, where his descendants lived. The three sites are collectively known in Qufu as "The Three Confucian ".

 

The oldest graves found in this location date back to the Zhou Dynasty. The original tomb erected here in memory of Confucius on the bank of the Sishui River had the shape of an axe. In addition, it had a brick platform for sacrifices. The present-day tomb is a cone-shaped hill. Tombs for the descendants of Confucius and additional stelae to commemorate him were soon added around Confucius' tomb.

Since Confucius' descendants were conferred noble titles (Duke Yansheng) and were given imperial princesses as wives, many of the tombs in the cemetery show the status symbols of noblemen. Tombstones came in use during the Han Dynasty. Today, there are over three thousand stone tablets dating from China's imperial period still standing in the cemetery. There are also 568 tablets from the Republic of China period and 50 modern (PRC-era) tablets, as well as 180 tablets whose age cannot be determined; this brings the total to 4003.

More than 10,000 mature trees give the cemetery a forest-like appearance. Each cemetery of duke has his own spirit way, oriented from the south to the north, which typically includes the following sculptures: three pairs of animals (felines, sometimes winged; rams; horses); a memorial arch; a bixi with a stele; two guardian figures (a warrior on the west side of the path, and a civil official on the east side); and a stele in front of the small tumulus under which the duke is buried. These all make the cemetery a spectacular place to visit.


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