[2025 Hotan County Attraction] Travel Guide for Yotkan Ancient City (Updated May)

The Ancient City of Yotgan: The Artistic Heart of Ancient Khotan in the Western Regions Yotgan Ancient City, with the ancient Khotan culture of the Western Regions of China as the core, it integrates the representative culture and art of the Western Regions to create a large-scale immersive historical and cultural experience scenic Attraction. It has both the Buddhist culture and art that was popular in the Western Regions, the Central Plains culture and art of the Tang Dynasty that was admired by the ancient Khotan, and the brilliant cultural treasures accumulated by the Hotan region in the long river of history. The Yotgan Ancient City is based on the Yotgan ruins and the historical culture and cultural relics of the Hotan region, as well as the Western Regions culture and art. Use modern culture and technology to recreate the prosperous scenery of China's Western Regions period. The ancient city of Yotgan is located in Baghiqi Town, Hotan County, Xinjiang. Hotan was formerly known as Khotan. It is an important town on the southern route of the ancient Silk Road and has been an inseparable part of the motherland since ancient times. It is backed by Kunlun Mountains in the south and lies in the desert in the north. It is the starting point of the Chinese Jade Road, the source of the legend of the Queen Mother of the West in Kunlun mythology, and the first stop for the spread of Chinese Buddhism to the east... The four major civilizations of the world collided and blended here, gradually forming a unique regional culture, and it is called the "Oriental Pearl" of the Western Regions by scholars. YotganIt is said to be the capital of the ancient Kingdom of Khotan during the Han and Tang Dynasties. It is now located in Ailaman Village, Bagchi Town, Hotan County. Legend has it that in the 1860s, due to the change of course of the Karakax River, a long deep ditch was washed out, and a large number of historical relics from the Han Dynasty to the Song Dynasty were revealed to the world. This is the mysterious Yotgan site. In 2020, the Yotegan Ancient City Cultural Tourism Project will be launched in a grand manner, which will activate the cultural spark buried for thousands of years. It is based on the ancient Khotan culture, refers to the royal city style recorded in historical documents, and integrates cultural essence into architectural aesthetics. With square city, red walls and white buildings as the main tone, it covers an area of 156 acres of land and carefully arranges food blocks, workshop blocks, folk blocks, jade treasure hunting blocks, royal city trails, bar blocks, homestay blocks, poverty alleviation product display areas, as well as five major cultural exhibition halls and other diverse scenes to boost and upgrade Hotan’s cultural tourism and create a new regional characteristic business card. Yotgan,According to legend, it was the capital of ancient Khotan during the Han and Tang dynasties. In the local language, it has two meanings: one is the hometown of kings; the other is "quilt", which indicates that many precious civilizations are buried under this land. Architectural Aesthetics of the Western Regions Royal City The whole of Yotgan Ancient CityThe main theme of the design is square city, red walls and white buildings. It is inspired by a mural of the capital of Khotan in the 10th century preserved in the mural of Cave 454 in Dunhuang. From the mural, we can know that the capital of Khotan is square in plan, with two gates, corner towers at the four corners of the city wall, a moat outside the city, and government offices and temples inside the city. The design of the Yotgan ancient city is restored with reference to the ancient city of Akspil (meaning "white city"), the ruins of the ancient western city of Khotan recorded in historical documents. Inspired by "Sand Burying Hotan", there is a pile of sand outside the city wall, presenting the image of a historical city. Inside the ancient city of YotganThe layout is well-arranged, and the architectural style is mainly based on the Xinjiang "Ayiwang" residential style. "Ayiwang" is Uyghur, meaning "a bright place with wooden carvings of animals, people and flowers, exquisite workmanship", and has a history of three to four hundred years. This architectural style took shape around the end of the Han Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty. "Song Yun's Travels" records that Khotan "has houses and markets everywhere, and the city walls and flowers and fruits are similar to Luoyang, but the flat roofs are different." The music of Khotan To awaken a dream that has been sleeping for a thousand years, the ancient city of Yotgan has joined hands with the well-known domestic cultural tourism performing arts team Beijing Wuwei Vision to create Xinjiang's first full-area immersive super-sensory performance "Music from All Directions in Khotan", bringing a new tourism experience of "one city with two styles, one street with one feature", "Ten Directions and Hundreds of Plays" during the day, and "Stories of the Ancient City" at night, vividly telling you the soul-stirring historical long song of the thousand-year-old ancient Khotan. Daytime tour of "Ten Directions and Hundreds of Plays" to restore the atmosphere of ancient Khotan market The ancient city of Yotgan gathers the ancient thousand-year-old sentiments, and hides more daytime stories in every corner of the ancient city waiting for people. During the day, under the exotic white buildings, with the drums of the corner tower, the Yuxuan Gate of ancient Khotan slowly opens, and Sogdian merchants, merchant camel caravans, city vendors... shuttle through the streets full of unique Western characteristics. Over a thousand years, they hold their goods in their hands, gather together, welcome guests with a smile, and use Xinjiang-style rituals to send a warm call to the guests... Night Tour of "Old City Story" Immerse in the Thousand-Year History When the exotic architecture meets the night performance, the story of Yotgan has a new page. When you step into the ancient city in the evening, you are not traveling through time, but going back a thousand years. As the theme song of "Millennium" plays, go to the bazaar to eat a bowl of fireworks, drink a few cups with the veterans to talk about the ups and downs of life... A beautiful picture of the splendid fusion of Eastern and Western cultures, the prosperous scenes of ancient Khotan are presented frame by frame, allowing the audience to immerse themselves in the long history of ancient Khotan and feel a wonderful ancient city that never closes 24 hours a day. Highlights: "Phoenix Crying at the Opening of the City", "Welcome Dance", "Market State of Khotan", "Music and Dance of Khotan", "Silk Phantom", "Silk Road Mutual Learning", "Tigers of the Desert", "Dreamlike Holy Land", "Boiling Old City" ① "Phoenix Crying to Open the City, Welcoming Dance" The phoenix cries and flutters its feathers, spring comes to the four seas. The stunning light and shadow show uses the cry of the phoenix as a signal to open the city to welcome guests! The auspicious beast cries loudly, and the golden-armored warriors guard the carriage of King Yuchi and Queen Yuchi, issuing an edict to sincerely welcome distinguished guests from all directions. The Bisha Gate opens with a bang, the welcoming dance is passionate and unrestrained, full of fantasy, and the camel-carrying music figurines floats come in, ushering in a joyous moment. ②《The City of Khotan》 Restore the lively scenes of the ancient Western Region bazaar, and transform yourself into it to look back at the prosperity thousands of years ago, the frequently coming and going merchants, the endless hawking of vendors, the wonderful acrobatic performances... Go through the hustle and bustle and taste the simple atmosphere of human life. ③《Music and Dance of Khotan》 The white blocks instantly transformed into a colorful kaleidoscope world of joy, accompanied by the cheerful and enthusiastic "Gilla", showing the music and dance charm of "Yuktian, the hometown of song and dance". ④ "Silk Phantom" The Phantom of Silk is adapted from the description of the "Silk Princess" of Khotan in Tang Xuanzang's "A Record of the Western Regions of the Great Tang Dynasty" and the woodblock print of "The Silk Princess" found in the Dandan Uilik ruins. It features the Silk Princess standing majestically on a white horse, the blue-armored female soldiers in armor protecting the princess, the cool 3D, and the female soldiers who can fly through the sky and the ground, presenting a visual feast of "women are as good as men", which is shocking, exciting and stunning. ⑤ "Silk Road Mutual Learning" In the stunning and dazzling Phantom of the Royal City, the Tang Dynasty's string and bamboo music and the Western Regions' Hu Xuan Dance are magnificent, opening up a beautiful picture of the splendid fusion of the Central Plains and Western Regions cultures, and performing a soul-stirring song of the Silk Road. ⑥ Desert Tigers Ban Chao gave up his pen and took up arms. He was ordered to travel to the Western Regions for 31 years and conquered more than 50 oasis city-states in the Western Regions. The King of Khotan sent troops to help him. Ban Chao's story is also a microcosm of the dynasties of the ancient Kingdom of Khotan guarding the border for the motherland. The passionate declaration on the battlefield and the loyal souls who fought bravely and bravely, the heroic story of Ban Chao and the veterans defending their country was staged at the Lion Gate. ⑦ "Dreamlike Holy Land" Zhang Qian was sent on a diplomatic mission to the Western Regions to open up a wide road for travel; Ban Chao guarded the Western Regions and only wished for a vast territory; from Faxian and Xuanzang in their "Red Star Over China" to the King and Queen of Khotan from the Yuchi royal family, their hearts were set on the Central Plains and they wrote a wonderful chapter on national unity, ethnic solidarity and ethnic integration in the history of the Chinese nation. ⑧ "Boiling Old City, Carnival in Old City" According to historical records, the Garuda is a sacred bird in Buddhism, with wings as shiny as gold, which emits thousands of golden rays under the reflection of sunlight. Under the reflection of the bonfire, the Garuda holds its head high and spreads its wings, flying towards the highest point of the Sumi Castle, crossing the long night; the song of Maisilaipu dances out a song of prosperity, making the entire ancient city look colorful and full of vitality.