◆Location in China
◆Terra Cotta Warriors
◆Huaqing Hot Springs
◆Wild Goose Pagoda
◆The Xi'an City Wall
◆The Bell Tower |
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Xi'an is the provincial capital of Shaanxi Province and a main development base of industries in northwest China. As a whole, Xi'an covers an area of 9983 square kilometers and has a population of 37,411,400.
In Xi'an, the southern part is higher than the northern area. The Qingling Mountain is on the south and Guanzhong plain is on the north. The Wei River flows from eastward through the Guanzhong plain.
Shaanxi Province has a monsoon climate in a warm Temperate Zone. The annual average temperature is 13.3 Celsius. The annual precipitation is 580mm. The 'black frost period' of vegetation (time of a dry freeze without the protective formation of hoarfrost can result in internal freezing and death of plants) can last up to 207 days.
Xi'an is a famous historic and cultural city. From the 11th century BC onwards, Xi'an or its vicinity was established as the capital city by 11 feudal dynasties successively, including the Western Zhou, the Qin, the Han, the Sui and the Tang. It has served as an ancient capital beyond comparison with regard to the number of dynasties and span of time.
Well-known places of interest in Xi'an include Banpo Museum, The Big Wild Goose Pagoda and The City Wall. Li Mountain is a very famous scenic spot.
The Museum of the First Emperor of Qin and his Terra-cotta warriors and horses are celebrated as the 8th wonder of the world. The traditional specialties in Xi'an are porcelain, paper-cut, embroidery, and mutton and beef soup with baked bread.
Xi'an abounds in mineral resources, e.g. iron, copper and marble. Agriculture and stock raising resources are abundant too.
The industrial system embraces such divisions of industry, as machinery, chemical engineering, textile, electronics, building materials, metallurgy and grocery. Among them, some kinds of these industries are very important in China's economy, e.g. electronic, textile, aviation, airplane, medicament and engine starter.
In agriculture, there is quality feed grain, cotton and animal husbandry. These crops include rape peanut, sesame seed, vegetables, fruits and herbal medicine.
In Xi'an, the railway and the highway communications are very convenient to facilitate travel all around this beautiful, ancient province of China.
The International Airport serves nearly forty cities both in China and abroad. |
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◎Location in China |
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Xi'an Province is located at 33degrees north and 107 degrees east in the southern part of the Guanzhong Plain in Shaanxi province with Qinling Mountains on the north and the Weihe River on the south.
Physical Features: with an elevation of 500 meters, the Guanzhong Plain extends between Baoji in the west and Tongguan in the east and borders the Qinling Mountains in the south and the Loess Plateau in the north.
Lying in the warm zone, the plain has a temperate climate with four distinct seasons. Chequered with the Wei, Jing, Luo, and Ba rivers as well as the Jinghui, Weihui and Luohui canals, the fertile land on the plain has easy access to irrigation facilities and an abundant yield of farm produce. Xi'an lies in the center by south of this plain, a favorable geographical location surrounded by water and hills. |
Nationalities: Han, Hui
Area: 16,808 sq km
Urban Population: 4 million
Urban Area: 400 sq km
History: called Chang'an in ancient times, more than 1 million years of condensed history. During Xi'an's 3,100 years of development, 11 dynasties such as Zhou, Qin, Han and Tang have appointed it as their capitals.
Climatic Features: temperate and continental climate; cold and dry in winter and hot in summer and rainy season comes in July, August and September.
Average annual Temperature: 13.3 Celsius . Rainfall: 604.2mm annually
Mountains: Mt. Huashan, Mt. Taibaishan, Mt. Lishan. Rivers: Hui River, Wei River, Feng River, Jing River
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| ◎Terracotta Warriors |
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Some farmers discovered the Terracotta Warriors in the east suburb of Xi'an in March 1974, while digging a well. According to the on-the-spot measurement after excavation, Vault 1, an underground architectural complex, is 5 meters deep, 230 meters long east to west, and 62 meters wide, north to south, covering an area of over 14,000 square meters. Leading down into the Vault is five slops doorways on each side. At a distance of 20 meters north of Vault 1, from east to west lie Vault 2 and Vault 3. Fire had wrought damages on all the three Vaults with the ground caved in and most of the pottery warriors, horses and weapons were broken.
Besides some bronze swords, curved swords, spears, crossbows, arrowheads etc. used as weapons in actual battles, nearly six thousand pieces of pottery warriors and horses were unearthed from the Vault 1.
The unearthed pottery warriors are 1.8 meters high and the clay horses, 2 meters long and 1.5 meters high. In the battle array, the vanguard appeared to be formed by three ranks of warriors all facing east, with 70 men in battle attire in each rank.
Immediately behind the van is the main body of 38-column formation. On each of the three sides of the main body arrays a single rank of men, all facing out, who looked to be the flank and rear guards of the formation.
The pottery army, compact in organization and magnificent in battle arrays, is presented on a grand scale. The pottery warriors, well-proportioned and exquisitely shaped, have each a distinctive individual expression: some biting their lips, some glaring or gazing, some meditating with their heads lowered, or with troubled looks, others appearing naive or animated.
With the amour buckled on, the soldier has his crossbow under the arm, and arrow quiver slung over the shoulder. The general, armored and keeping a hand on the tip of sword handle, maintains an awesome bearing. Strong and dynamic, the horse rears its head, bristling. The grandeur and superb workmanship fully demonstrate the great talent and vision of the Chinese nation.
In 1980, another two bronze chariots with riders and horses of larger size were unearthed. The chariots each with four bronze horses harnessed to, and a driver, have a luxurious canopy, pierced windows and a saddle and a bridle of gold and silver ornaments.
The chariots and horses are colorful and really true to life. These artistic treasures of the Qin Dynasty are undoubtedly one of the world's great wonders. |
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| ◎Huaqing Hot Springs |
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Located at the northern foot of Mt. Li in Lintong County, east suburb of Xi'an, 30 kilometers from the downtown, Huaqing Hot Springs is a state place of interest as well as scenic spot. According to the record, as early as the Dynasties of Zhou, Qin, Han, Sui and Tang, temporary imperial abode was constructed here. In the 6th year of Emperor Xuanzong Reign in the Tang Dynasty(747) it was expanded on a massive scale by turning the hot springs into bathing pools, ringing the Mount with palace buildings, which were to be protected by an outer circular defensive wall and renamed it Huaqing Palace.
As the palace was built upon the hot springs, it was also called Hot Spring Pools. In 756, it was reduced to ruins by the flames of war. Most of the existing buildings were constructed in the Qing Dynasty and after the liberation of China.
Huaqing Pools is fascinating for its exquisite and picturesque scenery characterized by pink peach blossoms, green willows, dense foliage, beautiful pavilions and terraces, magnificent halls, rolling towers, winding corridors and long verandas, Jiulong(Nine Dragons) Lake is crystal clear and mirrors the pavilions and towers.
Huaqing Hot Springs was very famous and used to be bathing site for imperial families during the Zhou, Qin, Han, Sui and Tang Dynasties.
Lady Yang, the highest-ranking imperial concubine in Tang Dynasty was also privileged in bathing in the pool. "To Bathe In Huaquing Pool In Time Of Freezing Spring, And In Slick Hot Spring Water, Rinsed Her Soft Creamy Skin" as the poem goes.
At the present, there are four springs flowing out with a total capacity of over 110 tons of water per hour at the constant temperature of 43 degrees centigrade, which is good for bathing.
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| ◎Wild Goose Pagoda |
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The Wild Goose Pagoda is situated at the Benevolence Temple in the south suburb of Xi'an City. The temple was originally known as Wulou Temple (literally “no leaking? in the Sui dynasty.
In the 21st year (647) of Emperor Zhenguan rein of Tang dynasty, Prince Li Zhi (who later succeeded to the thrown as Emperor Gaozong) reconstructed the Temple into Grand Benevolence Temple in commemoration of his mother, the Empress Wan De.
When Xuanzhuang, the Tang Monk, after acquiring the scriptures of Buddhism from India, returned to his motherland, he was lodged in the grand Benevolence Temple for the translation of the scriptures.
In the 3rd year of Emperor Yongwei's rein of the Tang Dynasty, the Pagoda was built after the style of the Western Regions for the storage of the translation version of Buddhist scriptures.
It was a five-storey building at the beginning and the built into 7 storeys when the Empress Wuzetian was in power. The Pagoda is square in shape, 64 meters high with spiral staircase leading up to the top.
There are structural design and Bodhisattva image delicately carved on the lintels on four sides.
At the lower part of the Pagoda are two stone tablets on which are engraved Preface of the Holy Teaching and the Narration Record of the Holy Teaching by Chu Suiliang, the calligrapher of the Tang dynasty and on the brim of the stone tablets are relief sculptures of musicians and dancers.
Xuanzhuang (602-664) generally known as the Master of the Law (Tripitaka of Buddhism), customarily called Tang Monk was a famous scholar of Buddhism, a great traveler and the Founder of Benevolence and Philanthropy of Buddhism.
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| ◎The Xi'an City Wall |
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The magnificent and grandiose Xi'an City Wall was constructed in the early Ming Dynasty on the basis of the Imperial City of Chang An (Everlasting Peace) of the Tang Dynasty. It is also a symbol of great significance of the famous historic cultural city of Xi'an.
One of the features of the Xi'an Wall lies in the fact that it has been preserved intact, which is rarely seen in the world. The construction of the Xi'an City was formally started in the seventh year of Emperor Hongwu's reign (1374) and completed in the eleventh year of Hongwu's reign (1378). After its completion, the circumference of the city wall was 13.75 kilometers long in an oblong shape. Its height is 12 meters; its mantle is 12-14 meters wide and its base, 15-18 meters wide. At the four corners are watchtowers at each.
Outside the wall are deep moats. There are four city gates, and to each of them are three tower entrances: sluice tower, embrasures watchtower and the main tower and in between are enceinte.
There are 98 watching-enemy platforms between the watchtowers and the city gates, protruding over the city wall, and on the platform are towers for watching the enemy to shoot them with bows and arrows from three sides and firing wooden cannon stones.
By taking advantage of the position like two sides of a horse face and the city wall, serious casualties are inflicted on the attacking enemy.
There are 5984 crenels which served as sentry lookout posts, firing at the enemy and providing a shield of protection. They formed a close engineering system of defense.
After repair and protection, the Xi'an City Wall now presents a three-dimensional distribution with the city wall, city moats, forest belt and city ring-routes combined into four-in-one grandeur in perfect harmony, each shining more brilliantly than the other |
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| ◎The Bell Tower |
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The Bell Tower is situated in Xi'an city, capital of Shaanxi Province. It was constructed in the 17th year of Emperor Hong Wu's reign of the Ming Dynasty (1384) (at now Guangji street cross) and in the 10th year of Wanli (1582) removed to the present site.
The construction of the three-storied Bell Tower shows multi-eaves, sunken cornices and pinnacles with turning corners.
The building basement area is 1377.4 square meters with four gateways connecting four streets. Each of the four sides of the building pedestal is 35.5 m broad and 8.6 m high. The height of the building is 27.4 m whilst it is 36 m high from base to apex. The architecture is grand and the art is a superb example of the craft of the time.
Ascending the tower to look around, one can get a bird's-eye view of the whole panorama of the ancient Xi'an city.
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