China: A group of well-to-do Chinese men posing in front of a stone elephant at the Ming Dynasty Tombs (1872)

The Ming Dynasty Tombs ( Míng shísān líng; lit. Thirteen Tombs of the Ming Dynasty) are located some 50 kilometers due north of Beijing. The site was chosen by the third Ming Dynasty emperor Yongle (1402–1424), who moved the capital of China from Nanjing to the present location of Beijing.

Yongle is credited with envisioning the layout of the ancient city of Beijing as well as a number of landmarks and monuments located therein. After the construction of the Imperial Palace (the Forbidden City) in 1420, the Yongle Emperor selected his burial site and created his own mausoleum. The Ming tombs of the 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty were located on the southern slope of Tianshou Mountain (originally Mount Huangtu).

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