Saturday, September 29, 2012

Pingyao City Walls

Pingyao city walls

Pingyao (2002 population: 490.000) is located about 715 km from Beijing. It is the last fully walled city in China; it is still surrounded by its city walls which are among the best preserved walls in China. The 12 meter high and 6 km long walls date back to the 14th century.

Map of the ancient city of Pingyao (www.travelchinaguide.com)

next episode: a mamluk

7 comments:

  1. This is an amazing wall! Thanks for sharing it with us. I find these kinds of things so fascinating.

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  2. I'm just reading Oracle Bones by Peter Hessler, a book about life in 21st century China, so I looked at this picture with particular interest.

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    1. I've just read a review of this book in the NYT, the developments in China are indeed fascinating.

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  3. Very imposing, but something grey and prison-like about it.

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  4. The towers are wonderful. Do you know if the large raised platforms at the base of the walls served a purpose?

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    1. No, I don't. It's an interesting feature.

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  5. An impressive wall indeed. These walls and the map of the town really reminds the "castra" of ancient Romans.

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