Xi'an (China): sights and history of the city

Xian (China) - the house of the great emperors and the capital of Ancient China. Once this city reached the status of the largest in the world. What stories remember the walls of the ancient city? What interesting things can you see in it?

Ancient city

Xian (China) is one of the oldest cities in the world, along with Athens, Rome and Cairo. It arose more than 3000 years BC. E. And survived the change of 13 imperial dynasties as the capital of Ancient China. From here, the Silk Road traders started their journey.

The ancient city of Xi'an was similar in its plan to a chessboard. Its territory was divided into 108 square in shape quarters, each of which was surrounded by a wall. It was possible to get from one block to another through the gates that closed with the sunset. A separate district in the city belonged to the emperor and the closest subject.

Xian (China) is associated with legendary personalities. The mythical ancestor of the Chinese Yellow Emperor - Huang-di, who founded Taoism, lived in the city. Here, Qin Shihuang, who united the Chinese lands, ruled.

The heyday of Xian reached during the Tang dynasty, when China became the most influential of the Asian countries. In these times Buddhism acquires Chinese folk features, other religions come: Christianity, Islam, Zoroastrianism, Judaism. After the collapse of the dynasty, the city began to wither, having lost the status of the capital.

Modern Xian (China)

The city is located in the central part on the banks of the Wei River. Modern Xian on the map has become more compared to past times, but the historic center has greatly diminished. In total, about 10 million people live in the city.

Now Xi'an is considered the spiritual and historical capital of China, one of its Christian centers. In local seminaries people from all over the country are taught to the clergy. Other religions also take place: the city has many Muslim mosques and even there is a Muslim quarter.

Local authorities managed to preserve the historical face of the city. It does not at all resemble other Chinese populous cities with skyscrapers that cover even the sky. Of course, the main streets, as elsewhere, are crowded with people. But this does not prevent tourists from visiting Xian every year.

The airport of international importance is located only 40 kilometers from the city, so it is not difficult to get there. There are also 5 railway stations in the city, one of which accepts high-speed trains.

Xian: attractions

The ancient part of the city is surrounded by high walls, which have been preserved since the Middle Ages. During the Ming and Tang dynasties , the walls were reconstructed and reconstructed many times. At first they were built from the ground, later they prepared a special mixture of rice, limestone and earth, and after they were built of bricks.

The surviving wall has a thickness of up to 17 meters, and a height of 12-15 meters. Its length is about 14 kilometers. The fortress walls, for observation and protection, are located every 120 meters, totaling 98. The upper part of the fortress walls looks like numerous prongs (more than 5500).

Inside the ancient walls there are many shopping malls and restaurants with almost a hundred-year history. There are many mosques in Xian. The most famous is the Great Mosque, which is the fourth largest in all of China.

A separate landmark is the Muslim quarter. It is famous for its varied cuisine from sweet halva to lamb or beef soup, which is even listed in China's heritage list.

Refreshed, distracted from the hustle and bustle of city streets can be in the Lotus Park or the park "Ruins of Qu Qiang Qi" with a beautiful lake and sculptures that are spread throughout the territory.

Army of terracotta

Honored by the Chinese emperor Qin Shihuandi united the country, standardized the hieroglyphs, but the whole world became famous for the immortal clay army. Earlier, belief in the afterlife forced to lay near the dead objects of everyday life, weapons, combat horses, and often living people. The Chinese emperor was more humane and ordered to make warriors of clay for his tomb.

About 9,000 clay warriors and their horses were buried with Shin Huang Qin around 210 BC. E. Each of them weighs 135 kilograms. The faces of the soldiers are not repeated, there is a suggestion that they reflect the faces of real people. To create the army, a lot of perseverance and labor was applied. Worked on it 700 000 people.

The legendary army was discovered quite by accident. In 1974, a peasant, digging a well, instead of water, unearthed the statue at a depth of 5 meters. Archaeological excavations have been conducted for 40 years and have not been completed so far.

Temple of Confucius

The former temple is now a museum. Here is a huge exhibition devoted to the Great Silk Road. "Forest stele" - one of the most memorable places in the museum. This is a stone library, where 2300 books are engraved on the stelae.

Under the emperor Qin all important historical books were burned, and, so that the bitter experience did not recur, the ruler of the Han dynasty ordered to engrave the texts on the stone stelae. Among the carved books there is the Nestorian doctrine of Christianity and the basic postulates of the philosophy of Confucius.

Nestorian Christianity was brought to Xian Raban from Syria in 635. The Emperor was so shocked by the new religion for him that he ordered to build a monastery in her honor and build a stele with the teachings in the temple of Confucius.

Conclusion

In the old city walls imprinted a long and turbulent story, which from the first minutes plunged those who visit Xian. Sights of the city are also fortified walls with defensive towers and tunnels, and the army of Great unifier of China Tsin Shihuandi, and many other monuments of Chinese culture.