In the front part of imperial necropolises there is usually a "sacred way" or "divine road" for the spirits of the royal dead - in which the ancients believed - to walk on. This road is often lined with stone statues of men and animals as important decorations of the grounds.

The group of statues are the earliest giant-sized stone sculptures known to stand in front of an ancient tomb in China.

Emperors in later epochs, taking their cue from this, had stone men and animals made for their own tombs, and they are now a common sight to greet visitors to imperial mausoleums of the Tang, Song, Ming and Qing dynasties.

The group of giant stone figures that stand on the grounds of the Ming Tombs near Beijing are the best preserved, the most true-to-life and most skilfully carved of their kind.

Erected where they are in A.D. 1435 (or the 10th year of the reign of the Ming Emperor Xuande), they consist of 12 human figures (civil and military officials and courtiers with meritorious records) and 24 animals (lions, camels, xiezhi, elephants, kylin, and horses - four of each, two standing and two squatting). The human figures were meant to imply firm and popular support to the imperial house, while the animals in different postures signified alternate day and night services to the dead monarchs.

Besides, different animals had each their symbolic significance:

The lion, ferocious in nature and lording it over the animal kingdom, symbolized awesome solemnity.

The camel and elephant, being dependable means of transport in the deserts and tropics, put together at the imperial tombs, were meant to suggest the vastness of the territory controlled by the court.

The xiezhi, a mythological unicorn which was supposed to possess a sixth sense to tell between right and wrong and which, when two men were embroiled in a fight, would gore the wicked one, was put there to keep evil spirits away.

The kylin, one of the four "divine animals" (the other three are dragon, phoeix and tortoise), was represented at the tombs as an auspicious symbol.

The horse, being the emperor's mount on many occasions, was of course indispensable.