People have been visiting their ancestors' graves and leaving them offerings of food and fake paper money. The Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb Sweeping Day, is a holiday observed in ethnic Chinese communities all over the world on the 15th day after the spring equinox.

The festival is marked with solemn ceremonies to honour the ancestors. People often leave fruit, whole chickens and other food for their dead relatives. They also burn incense, fake money and paper models of houses, cars and other goods in the belief their ancestors will be able to enjoy them in the afterlife.

Tomb sweeping
'Spirit money' is burned near a grave at a cemetery in Shanghai Johannes Eisele/AFP
Tomb sweeping
Smoke from burning incense and paper money rises over a cemetery in Fuzhou, Jiangxi Province, China Reuters
Tomb sweeping
People carry food offerings during an annual ceremony to pay respects to their ancestors in Taoyuan, Taiwan Tyrone Siu/Reuters
Tomb sweeping
A child looks through offerings left for ancestors in Taoyuan, Taiwan Tyrone Siu/Reuters
Tomb sweeping
A child holding a Hello Kitty balloon stands in front of offerings at a cemetery in Taoyuan, Taiwan Tyrone Siu/Reuters
Tomb sweeping
Vendors sells flowers during the Qingming festival at a cemetery in Babaoshan in Beijing Fred Dufour/AFP
Tomb sweeping
A man repaints the inscription on a relative's grave in Beijing Fred Dufour/AFP
Tomb sweeping
Women walk past graves adorned with offerings at a cemetery in Babaoshan in Beijing Fred Dufour/AFP
Tomb sweeping
Participants row boats during a traditional celebration for Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb Sweeping Day, in Taizhou, Jiangsu Province Reuters
Tomb sweeping
People wear traditional costumes at a celebration to worship Yellow Emperor Xuan Yuan, who is considered by many to be the ancestor of the Chinese, in Hangling county, Shaanxi Province, China Reuters
Tomb sweeping
A woman burns offerings and prays at her parents' grave in Shanghai Johannes Eisele/AFP
Tomb sweeping
People visit the graves of their ancestors at a cemetery in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Manan Vatsayana/AFP
Tomb sweeping
A father holds hands with his son as they walk over offerings and paper money in Taoyuan, Taiwan Tyrone Siu/Reuters
Tomb sweeping
Children holding lanterns parade for the Qingming Festival, or Tomb Sweeping Day in Yiwu, Zhejiang province Reuters
Tomb sweeping
Crowds arrive at a cemetry in Shanghai for the annual Qingming festival or Tomb Sweeping Day Johannes Eisele/AFP
Tomb sweeping
Food, incense and other offerings are pictured on a grave in Shanghai Johannes Eisele/AFP
Tomb sweeping
People tend to graves of their ancestors at a cemetery in Shanghai Johannes Eisele/AFP
Tomb sweeping
Paper money is burned beside a grave at a public cemetery in Shanghai Johannes Eisele/AFP

Tombs are swept and food, tea, wine and other gifts offered to the departed spirit and to the gods. Some families put willow branches on their gates or front doors to ward off evil spirits. Over 1,000 tonnes of paper products are burnt in memory of the deceased every year, but authorities are cracking down on the practice because of the fire risk.

Two Chinese forest rangers are reported to have died in a forest fire caused by people burning fake paper money and incense on Thursday (31 March). The fire broke out on a hillside in the eastern city of Qingdao and was put out by more than 100 firefighters after two hours, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. It said the two rangers died after getting trapped by the blaze and a third one was hospitalised.

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