Emperor Wanli's Throne at the Ding Tomb 定陵
The Chinese are believers of life after death, so strong is this belief that it is customary to provide luxuries to the deceased. Furniture and even cars can be given to the deceased individual. In the case of emperors, these are buried together with him. Emperor Wanli is buried at the Ding Tomb and it is no surprise to see certain things also inside the tomb building. As if trying to live up to his name, his name means Ten Thousand Calendars, Emperor Wanli tries to be emperor for all eternity with his own throne inside the tomb.
Chinese Tourists Around Some Artifacts at Ding Tomb 定陵
The throne is a remarkable work of art, it is completely made of stone and is surely very unfortable to sit on. Although the throne is cordoned off, it is still nonetheless, beseiged by tourists. For whatever reason, the Chinese tourists throw money at the throne, usually in the form of the one yuan bill. I never did know why they did that but I suppose it is for good luck. I was surprised that the authorities allow this. I guess if it is just paper money it should be okay as it would not chip the throne. Maybe if I could just sweep all of that money away….
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