Ming Tombs Reservoir

The Ming Tombs Reservoir or the Shisanling Reservoir (十三陵水库) is a dam in Changping District of northern Beijing, China. Named for the Ming tombs nearby, it is the lower reservoir of the Shisanling Pumped Storage Power Station. The earth-fill embankment dam is 29 metres (95 ft) high and 627 metres (2,057 ft) long. The dam creates a reservoir that can store 59,000,000 cubic metres (2.083565337×10⁹ cu ft) of water and contains a controlled chute spillway.^[2]

Ming Tombs Reservoir
Ming Tombs Reservoir and the dam
Official name	Ming Tombs Reservoir
Location	Changping, Beijing, China
Coordinates	40°25′03″N 116°26′58″E
Construction began	1958-1
Opening date	1958-4
Demolition date	N/A
Owner(s)	PRC
Dam and spillways
Height	29 m (95 ft)
Length	627 m (2,057 ft)[1]
Width (base)	179 m (587 ft)
Reservoir
Total capacity	60,000,000 m3 (49,000 acre⋅ft)[1]

History

The Triathlon Venue at the Ming Tomb Reservoir

The Ming Tombs Reservoir was built in only four months by hundreds of thousands of workers who labored around the clock.^[3]: 159

In 2008, the reservoir was one of the nine temporary venues of the Beijing Olympics. It was used for the Triathlon events at the 2008 Summer Olympics, during which it was known as the Triathlon Venue (simplified Chinese: 铁人三项赛场; traditional Chinese: 鐵人三項賽場; pinyin: Tiěrén Sānxiàng Sàichǎng).

Cultural relevance

During its construction, the project attracted writers and artists from nearby Beijing.^[3]: 159 The Ming Tombs Reservoir's development was represented in photography, music, literature and film.^[3]: 159

French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson also documented the construction in color photography.^[3]: 159