Maggs Bros.

It is difficult to overstate the importance of the burial of Sun Yat-sen, the father of the Republic of China, in Chinese history: The event comes close to the apotheosis of the former leader of the KMT and the founder of the first Republic of China. This is the official publication relating to the construction of the mausoleum in Nanjing and his subsequent re-interment on June 1st, 1929. After his death in 1925 he had been placed in the Biyun-si monastery in the Western Hill near Peking. It took over three years to build the mausoleum which had been designed by a young architect Lü Yanzhi (1894-1929) who had studied architecture at Cornell University and was a founding member of the Chinese Architectural Association.

The text describes in detail the procedures as well as the specific demands for its construction, as well as an account of transfer of the body by train from Beijing to Nanjing. There is also a detailed record of the ceremonies on that day as well as the various committees that ensured a meticulous execution of the plans: A total of 945 foreign and Chinese dignitaries had been invited. The volume includes a list of all attendees as well as a list of donations (both money and wreaths/flowers) for the funeral. The ceremony commenced at 2 a.m. when the coffin was lifted from Central Party Headquarters. From 10:15 am onwards Chiang Kai-shek presided over the proceedings. The coffin passed through the Central Avenue, with more than 20 archways along the way, where pine and cypress branches were decorated in blue and white cloth (the colours of the KMT party), and then proceeded over a long flight of steps up to the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum. Hundreds of thousands of people in Nanjing watched the funeral.