English: The area in the Ming (western) part of the Cemetery of Confucius where Dukes of Yansheng, who were the leaders of the Kong clan (55th through 64th generations in the direct line of descent from Confucius, according to an explanatory plaque) and the feudal rulers of Qufu, have been buried. Each of the dukes appears to have his own "spirit road" (shendao), i.e. a a path lined with the statues of feline creatures (cat? lions? tigers?), rams, horses, warriors and officials, concluded with a stele-bearing bixi tortoise, and, finally, the actual tombstone. As elsewhere in China, the tombstones and the bixi normally face south, while the spirit way figures face each other, looking across the path that runs from the south to the north.

English: The bixi, one of the guardians, and the tombstone of Kong Hongxu (Nanxi), seen from the SE. The figures in the far background are from his western neighbor and brother, Kong Hongtai