Author: Zhang Yuan Yang Yingqi
World cultural heritage, the historical memory and common wealth of all mankind.
At present, there are 55 world heritage sites in China, ranking first in the world, but do you know how many sites there are in Shaanxi?
The majestic style of the Qin and Han Dynasties, the charm of the prosperous Tang, Shaanxi, which once gave birth to the Chinese civilization, has left a large number of precious civilization marks after undergoing thirteen dynasties.
Shaanxi’s world cultural heritage has 3 sites and 9 sites distributed throughout the province. They are: Qin Shihuang Mausoleum and Terracotta Warriors and Horses Pit, Silk Road: Chang’an-Tianshan Corridor Road Network, and the Great Wall shared with other provinces and cities.
One of the great discoveries in the archaeological history of the 20th century: the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Qin Shihuang’s Mausoleum
In 1974, Yang Zhifa, a villager in Xiyang Village, Lintong District, accidentally found some fragments of pottery figurines while digging a well.
After exploration and excavation, a large figurine pit appeared in front of the world.
Yang Zhifa did not realize that his accidental discovery was not just a cultural relic, but one of the great discoveries in the archaeological history of the 20th century.
This "Eighth Wonder of the World" has become one of the favorite places for foreign heads of state to visit in China. More than 200 foreign heads of state and government leaders have visited here.
General figurines.
Zhang Yuanshe
The pit of terracotta warriors and horses is located in the south of Xiyang Village, 1.5 kilometers east of the Mausoleum of Emperor Qin Shi Huang. It is the burial pit of Emperor Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum.
Three figurines pits have been discovered, covering an area of more than 20,000 square meters.
Among them, nearly 8,000 pottery figurines and horses similar in size to real people and horses were found. The pottery figurines are rich in variety, neatly arranged, and their images are also different and lively.
When people stand in front of Pit No. 1 of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses for the first time, they are always shocked by the scene in front of them: the majestic army formation seems to bring people back to the Qin Empire.
Today, nearly half a century has passed since the terracotta warriors were discovered, but it is still the focus of people's attention.
The heads of the terracotta warriors just unearthed.
Data map
"The discovery and excavation of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Qin Shihuang made up for the lack of this fractured civilization. For the study of the burial system of feudal emperors, the political, economic, military, social life, sculpture art, bronze casting technology and other aspects of the Qin Dynasty are particularly precious." Lintong District Museum The former curator Zhao Kangming said in his book "A Career in Archaeology".
As the first person to restore the terracotta warriors and horses, Zhao Kangming deeply understands the cultural significance of these warriors and horses, and dedicated his life to the protection and restoration of the terracotta warriors and horses.
Liu Jiangwei, 52, is also engaged in the restoration of the terracotta warriors and horses.
Liu Jiangwei entered the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum of Qin Shihuang's Mausoleum when he was 19 years old. To this day, the task of restoration of cultural relics he took over is still a "hard bone" with a huge amount of engineering and many remaining problems.
Liu Jiangwei.
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
In Liu Jiangwei's view, the most difficult part of the restoration process of the terracotta warriors and horses is the protection of the color of the terracotta warriors.
“After the terracotta warriors and horses are fired, they will be painted with a layer of raw lacquer, and then painted on the surface. The unearthed pottery warriors have undergone major changes in temperature and humidity, and some of the painted layers have been painted in a short period of time. It will curl and fall off inside." Liu Jiangwei said.
Not only that, Liu Jiangwei also worked hard to restore the stone armor unearthed from the Mausoleum of the First Emperor of Qin.
From July 1998 to January 1999, a large number of stone armors and stone corpses were unearthed in a burial pit about 200 meters away from Qin Shihuang’s mausoleum.
Liu Jiangwei and his comrades discovered that most of the stone armors were Zha armor or exquisitely crafted "fish scale armor", which should have been worn by high-ranking generals.
Taking into account the self-respect of the stone armor, Liu Jiangwei designed a set of "inner tank", like a mannequin, "wearing" the stone armor on it, which is quite practical.
That year, Liu Jiangwei (first from left) and his companions repaired Shi Zhou together.
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
"We are dealing with cultural relics that are already very fragile. Just like a doctor facing a seriously ill patient, we must not be sloppy. Any small error in the operation will most likely result in a very large loss." Liu Jiangwei's summary Dao, the restoration and protection of cultural relics requires slow work and meticulous work, but also to endure loneliness.
For more than 40 years, with the development of society, the Qin Shi Huang Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum has developed into the Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum Museum, and the terracotta warriors and horses have become a national archaeological site park.
At the same time, the exhibition and utilization of Qin Shihuang’s Mausoleum has been continuously deepened and expanded, making it a model for the study, protection and utilization of cultural heritage.
Today, the Qin Terracotta Warriors and Horses have received more than 100 million visitors from home and abroad, and the number of visitors continues to grow.
The Terracotta Warriors and Horses of the Qin Dynasty are not only the most “sad” “world heritage” in Shaanxi, but also a “business card” of China.
The Silk Road: Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor Road Network
In 2014, at the 38th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, the "Silk Road: Road Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor" jointly inscribed by China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan was passed and became a world cultural heritage.
The Silk Road, which straddles the Eurasian continent, witnessed the exchanges between the economic, cultural, and social development of the Eurasian continent from the 2nd century BC to the 16th century AD.
The World Heritage Committee has stated that this is a road of integration, exchange and dialogue between the East and the West. It has made important contributions to the common prosperity of mankind in the past two thousand years.
The site of Weiyang Palace in Chang'an City of Han Dynasty, the site of Daming Palace in Chang'an City of Tang Dynasty, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Xingjiao Temple Pagoda, Big Buddha Temple Grottoes in Bin County, and Zhangqian Tomb in Chenggu in Shaanxi are important coordinates on this prosperous road.
The site of Weiyang Palace in Chang'an City of Han Dynasty.
Zhang Yuanshe
The site of Weiyang Palace in Chang'an City of Han Dynasty symbolized the earliest eastern starting point of the Silk Road.
Weiyang Palace was built in 200 BC. As the most important palace in the capital of the Western Han Dynasty, it was the center of power of the Han Empire.
In the 7th to 10th centuries, the eastern starting point of the Silk Road became the Daming Palace in Chang'an City of Tang Dynasty.
It is located in the northeast of Tang Chang'an City, and is built on the north wall of Tang Chang'an City to the south.
Today, the site is located on the original Longshouyuan in the north of Xi'an. It is the representative remains of Tang Chang'an City, the starting point of the East during the heyday of the Silk Road.
Danfeng Gate was once known as the "First Gate in the World". This is the restored Danfeng Gate of the Daming Palace Ruins Park in the Tang Dynasty (photographed in 2014).
Photo by Xing Chong
In the 2nd century BC, Zhang Qian, the pioneer of the Silk Road, embarked on a westward journey.
After 18 years of two missions to the Western Regions, Zhang Qian, the famous diplomatic envoy of the Han Dynasty, left behind the earliest and most detailed written materials of the Western Regions and Central Asia in the second century BC for later generations.
Zhang Qian himself was therefore closely related to this major world historical event of cultural exchange between the East and the West. The excavation of Zhang Qian’s tomb has confirmed the existence of this great historical figure. It has now become a tomb of world-class precious heritage, representing The Chinese people's perseverance and pioneering spirit has also been remembered and commemorated endlessly by future generations.
The Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Xingjiao Temple Pagoda, and Big Buddha Temple Grottoes in Binxian County further demonstrate the significance of the Silk Road to cultural exchanges between the East and the West.
They witnessed the spread of Buddhism along the Silk Road to the prevalence of Chang'an in the Tang Dynasty.
The Big Wild Goose Pagoda was built in the 7th to 8th centuries to preserve the Buddhist scriptures brought back to Chang'an by the Tang Dynasty monk Master Xuanzang via the Silk Road. The Xingjiao Pagoda was built by Master Xuanzang and his disciple Kui Ji and Xinluo disciple Yuance. The relics of the tombs have an important position in the history of Buddhism dissemination and the history of cultural exchanges on the Silk Road.
The first station of the Great Wall: Zhenbei station
Zhenbei Terrace.
Yulin City Government website data map
On the Hongshan Mountain outside the urban area of Yulin City, Shaanxi Province, stands the largest existing beacon tower-Zhenbei Terrace.
This "first station of the Great Wall" was built by Tu Zongjun, the governor of Yansui, in the thirty-fifth year of the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty. It is the most ambitious observation and command post on the Great Wall.
Climbing up to the northern platform of the town for a far view, surrounded by a whole piece of green grass, and in the distance you can see the oasis surrounded by hills and dunes.
The towering high platform, the vast forest and the sea, a magnificent scenery greeted the eyes.
Frontier Fortress Yulin Ancient Great Wall.
Yulin City Government website data map
The site of Zhenbei Terrace is located near the site of the original Qin Great Wall.
This place is a historically contested place for the military leaders of "Beijing Hetao, Nanping Wuyan, East Control Shanxi, and West Ganning". Nomads from all over the world have tried to pass through this place to gain control of the Central Plains. It is an indispensable border defense line. The pass.
"The important town is full of autumn sounds, and patrolling is not for taking the stage. Thousands of mountains line up to the sky, and one water comes from the desert." Liu Minkuan, governor of Ming Yansui, governor of the three sides of Shaanxi, and right minister of the Ministry of War, once wrote this poem for Zhenbeitai.
Yulin was a frontier fortress in ancient times. Along the Great Wall is one of the four major sandy areas in China. Zhenbeitai is also located in the yellow sand desert. The Mu Us Desert once invaded this place.
During the reign of Emperor Yongzheng in the Qing Dynasty, Yulin City was already "sand and the city level." People can even ride into the city by riding on the sand.
But now, Zhenbei Terrace is no longer what it used to be like "looking around yellow sand and producing no grains."
Hongshixia Ecological Park Scenic Area.
Yulin City Government website data map
Near today’s Zhenbeitai, there are the rippling Hongshixia Reservoir, lush sandy botanical gardens, winding sandy canals, and even fruit gardens with year-round harvests. All of this is due to the hard work of the people in Yulin for years of sand control. The results.
"The Zhenbei Terrace in the past was not like this," said Duan Yunfei, president of the Great Wall Society of Yulin City.
In the early days of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, Yulin’s forest coverage rate was only 0.9%. Quicksand engulfed 1.2 million mu of farmland and pasture. Six towns and 412 villages were buried by wind and sand. Yulin imported 530 million tons of sediment from the Yellow River every year due to soil erosion. It accounts for one-third of the yellow sediment in the middle and upper reaches.
Whenever the wind blows, the sand billows here, covering the sky and the sun. There is almost no green in the wind and sand line of nearly 100 kilometers.
The picture shows the Mu Us Desert, designated as a desert observation point.
Photo by Dang Tianye
In 1950, the first National Forestry Conference put forward the policy of "universal forest protection and key afforestation", and large-scale afforestation and ecological management of the Mu Us sandy land began.
In order to realize the "green" dream, the people of Yulin stepped forward and embarked on a long-term undertaking of sand prevention and control.
In the autumn of 1977, the militiamen of the Bulanghe Women's Desert Control Company, Yulin City, Shaanxi Province marched into the desert (data photo).
Image source: Shaanxi Provincial Forestry Bureau
In 1974, the Bulanghe Women's Militia Sand Control Company was established in the local area. 54 female militiamen with an average age of only 18 set up camps at the Heifengkou of Bulanghe, the most severely eroded sandy area in the area, and started afforestation for nearly half a century.
According to He Li'e, the third-term company commander of the Bulanghe Women’s Sand Control Company, when the control was started, the place was a large desert. There was no firewood within a few miles of the area, but the sisters built their own houses, planted trees, Nurturing seedlings, vowed to manage this desert well.
The sand control team pulled the soil to pressure the sand in Duiziliang Xiaotan Village (data photo).
Image source: Shaanxi Provincial Forestry Bureau
"In the first ten years, we struggled hard, fighting against the sky, against the earth, and against various natural disasters. More than 60 people in the whole company only had more than 20 yuan a year for medical expenses, and we planted various Chinese herbal medicines to treat diseases. We are A concentric circle was born for sand control," said He Shalian, a first-generation veteran militiaman.
Under the leadership of 14 company commanders, the Bulanghe Women's Sand Control Company has flattened more than 800 sand dunes and built 35 wind-proof and sand-fixing forest belts.
Generations of foresters have worked hard, sweat and even their lives to build indestructible green corridors in the Mu Us Desert.
The picture shows the Desert Ecological Park in Yuyang District.
Photo courtesy of Yuyang District Forestry Bureau
In the past 70 years, the forest coverage rate of Yulin, which was once vast with yellow sand, has increased from 0.9% to 33%. The local 8.6 million mu of quicksand has been fixed and semi-fixed, and Mingsha has been hard to find.
Nowadays, the Mu Us Desert where Zhenbei Terrace is located is about to disappear from the map. Zhenbei Terrace is no longer hidden under the yellow sand, but stands on a vast oasis. The scenery around Zhenbei Terrace has become the Chinese people’s fearlessness. The epitome of insisting on sand control.
The above are the 3 9 World Heritage Sites in Shaanxi, of which 6 (Terracotta Warriors and Horses, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Xingjiao Temple Pagoda, Daming Palace, Weiyang Palace) are located in Xi'an.
How many places have you been to?
Have a chance to take a look!