[2024 Turpan Attraction] Travel Guide for The Ancient City of Gaochang (Updated Nov)
Ancient Towns
Military Sites
Historical Sites
UNESCO World Heritage - Cultural Sites
Address:
Gaochang, Turpan, Xinjiang, China
Opening times:
Open today at 09:30-19:30(Tickets available until 19:30)Opening Soon
Recommended sightseeing time:
3 hours
Phone:
0995-8687885,0995-8687666
Turpan | Gaochang Ancient City
🏜️Gaochang Ancient City is located in Gaochang District, Turpan City. The city is divided into three parts: the outer city, the inner city, and the palace city. In addition to the residential areas, the city also contains the remains of Buddhist, Zoroastrian, Manichaean, and Nestorian sites. Gaochang was first mentioned in the Han dynasty as Gaochangbi. It became Gaochang County during the Wei and Jin dynasties, and continued to be used during the Northern Liang, Qu Gaochang, and Gaochang Uyghur periods. It was the most important military and political center for the governance of the Western Regions, and an important transportation and cultural hub in the Western Regions and on the Silk Road.
🏆In 1961, Gaochang Ancient City was listed as one of the first batch of national key cultural relics protection units by the State Council.
Mitchell_50+Sophie
The Biggest Ancient City Ruins in Xinjiang 🇨🇳
#traveldiaries
In the middle of the Gobi Desert lies the ancient city if Gaochang. This ancient city has been abandoned for about 1000 years ago but people nowadays can inky watch the remnants of how the city used to look like.
It is really massive and I don’t recommend it walking around there , just go with a shuttle bus to take you to different interesting spot inside the city ruins.
Tips:
1. Cover up and apply sun cream as there is no shade here at all. You’m surely get sunburnt if you’re not covered up.
2. Do not wander beyond the concrete roads as they are not sure if some areas are hallow underground so just stay on the concrete roads.
3. Bring water- so hot here and there are bo shops around so be sure to pack your self a bottle of water.
Ticket price: 40
Length of Visit: 1 hour (since it is a guided trip with the shuttle bus and you’re together with the other tourists so you kind of just follow the majority. If most tourists are done in one area then it is time to head to the next stop.
Enjoy 😊
#tripblazers #trip #tripmoments #china #chinatrip #xinjiang #historicallandmarks
FilipinaTraveler
Xinjiang. Turpan. Gaochang Ancient City.
Covering an area of about 2.2 million square meters, the ancient city is surrounded by mountains and has a low-lying terrain. It has a temperate continental climate and is dry with little rain throughout the year. It was the central town of the Turpan Basin from the Western Han Dynasty to the Yuan and Ming Dynasties (1st century BC - 14th century AD). It has a history of about 1,400 years, including the Western Han Dynasty Gaochang Wall, Gaochang County, Gaochang State, Tang Dynasty Xizhou, and Gaochang Uighur.
Antonietta Hermiston
Travel Memories Fragment: The Ancient City of Gaochang in Turpan, Xinjiang
The Ancient City of Gaochang
Carrying the high temperature, I walked into the ancient city over the years
This is where Xuanzang gave his sermons
I learned about the story of Xuanzang and King Qu Wentai of the Gaochang Kingdom
Feeling the kingdom from thousands of years ago
It's right beside me
Standing in front of the broken walls and remnants
I marvel at walking on the same land as Xuanzang, separated by a thousand years
—It's really hot on the feet
Cook Grace 21
The Ancient City of Gaochang in Turpan
The ancient city of Gaochang is located at the southern foot of the Flaming Mountains, in the delta of the Mutou Gou River, in Sanbao Township, more than 40 kilometers east of Turpan City, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Covering a total area of 2 million square meters, it was the central town of the Turpan Basin from the Western Han to the Yuan and Ming periods (1st century BC to 14th century AD), spanning approximately 1400 years. The ancient city of Gaochang includes three layers of cities: the outer city, the inner city, and the palace city (Khan Fortress). Within the city site, there are numerous religious ruins and relics. The temple buildings contain Manichaean murals and Buddhist murals, statues, and more. The city is rich in relics, with documents and classics in different scripts unearthed. The palace city is located at the northernmost part, with two well-preserved temple ruins at the southwest and southeast corners of the outer city. In the middle of the northern part of the inner city, there is an irregular square palace city, commonly known as the "Khan Fortress." The ancient city of Gaochang was abandoned in the late 13th century due to wars, and most of the buildings have disappeared.
In the northern palace city, many tall palace foundations remain, generally about three and a half to four meters high, indicating the presence of palace buildings up to four stories high.
To the north of Gaochang city was originally a vast Gobi desert, where most residents were buried after death. The entire cemetery extends from the northeast to the northwest of the city, about five kilometers long from east to west and two kilometers wide from north to south, covering an area of about ten square kilometers. Since the beginning of this century, more than 500 tombs have been excavated and cleaned here, unearthing various historical relics such as documents, silk, wool, cotton, linen fabrics, epitaphs, coins, clay and wood figurines, pottery and wooden utensils, paintings, crops, fruits, and food, numbering in the tens of thousands.