The Green Mound
The heart of the tomb.
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A tomb attributed to Wang Zhaojun, one of the Four Beauties of Chinese tradition, a commoner of the Western Han dynasty whom Emperor Yuan sent in the first century BC to marry Huhanye, chief of the Xiongnu tribes of the steppe, to seal friendly ties between the two, which made her a symbol of friendship between the steppe peoples and China. The tomb stands on the Dahei River south of Hohhot, its centrepiece a 33-metre earthen mound on a site of some 13,000 square metres; it is nicknamed the «Green Mound» after a legend that its grass stays green in autumn when all around it withers, and its Mongolian name, Temür Urkhu, means «Iron Wall». The tomb is honorary, as her true grave is unknown, the oldest written record of it dates from the Tang dynasty, and the site now houses the Zhaojun Museum with its gardens and exhibitions. Entry is free with online booking, and the site is open from 9 am to 5 pm from late April to early October and from 9.30 am to 4.30 pm the rest of the year, closed on Tuesdays except public holidays, per visitor guides.
The heart of the tomb.
With its gardens and exhibitions.
A symbol of friendship.
On the Dahei River, about 9 km south of Hohhot
No, the tomb is honorary and her true grave is unknown, but it is the best-known site linked to her name, first recorded in Tang-dynasty books.