Located in Mingzuling town, Xuyi County and 15km northwest from the county seat, the Ming Ancestors Mausoleum is the tomb of the grandfather of Zhu Yuanzhang, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty（1368-1644）and the cenotaphs of his great grandfather and great great grandfather. The construction of the mausoleum began in 1385 and finished in 1413. It looks solemn and majestic. The Yellow River changed its course and merged with the Huai River in 1680 and the mausoleum and the ancient Sizhou city were ruined by the flood. There was a drought in the spring of 1953 and the tomb emerged from the water. In 1963, it broke the surface of water again and was discovered by the archaeologists in Jiangsu and confirmed to be the Ming Ancestors’ Mausoleum. It was repaired in 1976 and opened in 1982 and defined as a heritage site as a provincial key protection site. It was approved by the State Council as a heritage site under national key protection in October 1996 and approved as a national AAAA scenic spot in 2008.
Source:chinadaily.com.cn