Day 269: Jiaohe Ancient City

Yar City (Jiaohe Ancient City) was initiated and built by Gushi (named as Cheshi afterwards) people in the second century BC. with two rivers running down-wards around the city and intersecting. Being a key town at Turpan basin,southern foot of east Mount Tianshan along the Silk Road, it reached its peak in Northern and Southern Dynasties, and also Tang Dynasty, but was destroyed and abandoned by Chagatai Khanate at the end of Yuan dynasty in the 14th century due to successive years of war.

Yar City ruins is basically south-north direction and well preserved,
300 meters at the widest in willow-leaf-shaped,being over 1750 meters long
a west-east direction. Built on three
terraces surrounded by valleys on Gobi oasis, it consists of one town site and two cemetery remains.

The town site is divided into six parts, namely large courtyard district, administrative district, warehouse district, residential area, temple district and tomb district. The cemeteries are located at
the two terraces in the west and north respectively. Yar City ruins covers an area of 376,000 square meters in total and the existing architectural relics 220,000 square meters. Excavated the towering terrace surface downwards, temples, offices, city gates and residents in earth walls, known as "earth excavation for walls houses” were all built

With distinct building techniques, the whole ancient city is a huge sculpture, being rare worldwide. Most existing buildings were built in Tang Dynasty, keeping architectural features of Central Plain cities before Song Dynasty.Read more