First Pass Under Heaven

The great east gate of Shanhaiguan, traditionally the eastern terminus of the Ming Great Wall

The First Pass Under Heaven (Tianxia Diyi Guan) is the great east gate of Shanhaiguan and the symbolic eastern end of the Ming-era Great Wall. The gate-tower, a double-eaved building of grey brick and dark timber rising above the wall, faces east toward the mountains and the sea — the direction from which the Manchu armies were expected. The huge calligraphic plaque on the outer face is one of the most photographed signs in China.

Visitors can climb the wall and enter the gate-tower, which houses a small museum of historic weapons and a model of the pass. The view from the upper deck takes in the curve of the city wall, the mountains rising to the north (where the Wall climbs to Jiao Mountain) and the long flat coastal plain stretching east to the sea. The pass complex is the entrance to the larger old town and the natural starting point for a visit.

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A story
The huge horizontal calligraphy reading "天下第一關" (*Tiānxià dì-yī guān*, "First Pass Under Heaven") was painted in 1472 by **Xiao Xian**, a Ming dynasty official, on a piece of mulberry-wood board nearly six metres wide. Each character is over a metre across. The original is preserved inside the gate-tower; the version visible from outside is a faithful Ming-era reproduction.