The Turpan County royal family's symbol of royal and religious authority, a patriotic demonstration for future generations to admire as a model teaching

I finally arrived at the other side of the Anywhere Door - Turpan Coming out of the ancient city of Jiaohe, our private driver took us directly to a spacious terrace in Munar Village, located 2 kilometers east of Turpan city, to see a tower-shaped Islamic building with a novel and unique design - the Emin Minaret. The Emin Minaret is the largest ancient tower still standing in Xinjiang, built in 1778 AD, and has a history of over 230 years. It was constructed by the famous patriotic Uyghur figure of the Turpan County, Emin Khoja, during the Qing Dynasty, to report the grace of the Qing Dynasty, express his devotion to Allah, and to ensure his lifetime achievements would be remembered. He personally funded the construction with 7,000 taels of silver. The Emin Minaret complex consists of the ancient tower and a mosque, designed and built by Uyghur architectural masters such as Ibrayin and others during the Qing Dynasty. The scenic area is not large, with only a few tourists and no staff in sight, making it a niche and unpopular attraction. The reason why it's called Emin Minaret is not explained on the scenic area's display boards, which is quite puzzling. Only after searching on Baidu under the shade of grapevines did I find out that the Emin Minaret, also known as the Emin Tower, was named after Suleiman II, the son of the Turpan County King Emin Khoja, who built the tower to commemorate and honor his father's achievements. The Emin Minaret stands 37 meters tall with a base diameter of 10 meters. The exterior is built with uniform grey-yellow bricks, and the tower body is conical, tapering evenly from bottom to top. The surface of the tower is layered with fifteen different geometric patterns such as triangles, four-petaled flowers, water ripples, and diamond shapes, which repeat in cycles, endlessly varying, and embodying a strong Islamic architectural style. Next to the tower is a large mosque built from sun-dried earthen bricks that is still in use, with a spacious and magnificent prayer hall that can accommodate over a thousand people, a domed vault, beautifully shaped horseshoe arches, numerous niches, and dim preaching chambers, all reflecting the style of Islamic architecture and the intense atmosphere of religious life, making it one of the must-visit spots for photography enthusiasts.