Xi'an is situated in the central part of China, between the
Weihe River in the north and the Qinling Mountains in the south.
The city lies on a major rail route which runs from Lianyungang
on the Yellow Sea via Urumqi in the 
autonomous
region of Xinjiang and on to Kazakhstan. XiĄŻan probably possesses
more items of archaeological interest than any other town or
city in China--the most important, of course, being the world-famous
Terra-Cotta Warriors and horses.
Xi,an is an ancient site, and there are layers of cities of
different names beneath and around it. The land is fertile,
renewed yearly by the silt from the Yellow River. Both nomadic
and farming people enjoyed the relatively flat landscape, ready
water, and ease of travel. Long ago, tradersĄŻ camps were erected
outside the city walls--a mixture of colorful tents, utensils,
bags, and bundles. The tradersĄŻ wares were cottons and exotic
spices from India, metals and ceramics, scrolls of paintings,
and seeds--most of it to be bartered for cascades of silk in
all colors and textures to take on the return journey west.
Qianling Masoleum
Qianling Mausoleum is joint tomb of Gao Zong (Li Zhi,628-683A.D),the
third emperor of Tang Dynasty and his empress Wu Zetian(624-705A.D).
Wu Zetian was only empress in Chinese history .The mausoleum
lies on Liangshan Hill ,6 kilometers north of Qianxian county
,and about 80kilometers northwest of Xi'an. It was built in
682A.D, and brought into completion 32years later .It is located
on Liangshan Hill,1,047 meters above sea level .On both sides
of the sacred way in front of the tomb , 124 exquisite and lively
stone statues are lined up from north to south .
They include a pair of octagonal cloud pillars ,a pair of winged
horses, a pair of scarlet birds ,five pairs of stone horses
,and ten pairs of guarding generals with helmets on their heads
and swords in their hands .In addtion ,outside the south gate
there are two tablets: the Tablets to the Holy Deeds of Emperor
GaoZong and the worldless Tablet to Wu Zetian .there are aslo
61 stone statues representing the heads of the ethnic minority
groups and envoys from friendly countries who came to attend
Emperor GaoZong's funeral.
The Forest of steles
The Forest of Steles has the best steles of ancient dynasties
of this province and is a treasure house of the Chinese calligraphic
art.
The Forest of Steles founded in 1090 A.D. (fifth year of Yuanyou
of the Northern Song Dynasty) houses over 2300 steles of the
Han, Wei, Sui, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties.
The well known steles of many dynasties includes "the Stele
of Caoquan" of the Han, "the Stele of Si Mafang"
of the Jing,"the Stele of the Canons of Filial Piety on
Stone Terraces","the Stele of the Stone Classics of
Kaichen" and "the Popular Stele of Daqin Nestorianism"
of the Tang.
Exhibited here are also stone tablets on which are engraved
the handwritings of such Tang calligraphical masters as Ouyang
Xun, Chu Suiliang, Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan.
City Wall
The city wall of xi'an is an extension of the old Tang Dynasty
structure. The city wall ,after its extension in Ming Dynasty,stands
12meters high, it is12-14 meters wide on the top , 15-18meters
thick at the bottom and 13kilometers in length.
The city wall was first built of earth ,rammed layer upon
layer.The base layer was made of earth ,quicklime ,and glutinous
rice extract ,tempered together.It made the wall strong and
firm . Thus ,the Ming Dynasty city wall formed a complex and
welll-organized system of defense.
It is also the most complete city wall that has survived through
China's long history. The city wall itself is a true display
of ability and wisdom of the working people in ancient times.
It privides invaluable and substantial material for study of
the history ,military science, and architecture of the Ming
Dynasty.
Big Wild Goose Pagoda
Situated in Da Ci'en Temple,about 4kilometers from the urban
center ,the Big Wild Goose Pagoda is one of the famous Buddhist
pagodas in China.Originally built in 589 A.Din the Sui Dynasty
,the temple was named Wulou temple .In 648A.D, Emperor Li Zhi
, then still a crown prince ,sponsored a repair project on the
temple in memory of his mother ,Empress Wende .It then assumed
the present name Da Ci'en Temple (the Temple of Thanksgiving
). The temple consisted of 1,879 magnificient rooms and was
a place of grand extent in tang dynasty.
The
Tang Regime gave orders to build a chamber for the translation
of Buddist scriptures and appointed the widely renowned Master
Xuan Zang(Monk Tripitaka) the head of temple.Xuan Zang was both
a great translator and traveler .He spent 17 years doing research
into Buddhism in Indian ,he returned to Chaang'an in 645A.D
with 657 volumes of Buddhist scriptures.Xuan Zang stayed in
temple for 12 years and translated 1,335 volumes of buddhist
scriptures.
In Tang Dynasty ,every successful candidate who passed the
imperial examination would climb up the pogoda and write poems
and inscriptoins to indicate that he would have soaring career
in the future .
Small Wild Goose Pagoda
The Pagoda was originally situated within the premises of the
Felicity Temple in the Anren Block in Chang'an city of the Tang
Dynasty. The Temple was founded in 684 A.D. (first year of Wenming
of the Tang Emperor Ruizong), 100 days after the Emperor Gaozong's
death, by the royal family and the aristocracy in order to "offer
happiness" to the Emperor.
The Pagoda was constructed in 707 (first year of Jinglong of
the Tang Emperor Zhongzong Li Xian). The pagoda is a square
brick construction, 45 meters high with 15 tiers.
It is uniquely and delicately shaped, with a rhythmic series
of projecting eaves. Above the arched doorways on the first
tier are Tang engravings of ivy designs and Buddhist figures.
Small wild goose pagoda Attraction Bampo site Feng and Hao sites
Qin Mausoleum Weiyang Palace(Han) Daming Palace(Tang) Zhaoling
Mausoleum Qianling Mausoleum Big wild goose pagoda The Caotang
Temple The Daxingshan Temple The Qinglong Temple The Xingjiao
Temple The Xiangji Temple The great Mosque Shaanxi provincial
museum Forest of steles The bell tower The drum tower The huaqing
pool Mt.Huashan Xi'an city wall.
Bell & Drum Tower
The Bell Tower is a classical building with carved beams and
painted rafters .It stands in the center of the downtown area
.It houses a bell which was originally used to stricke time
every morning in ancient times .Ever since its establishment,
it has become the symbol of Xi'an.The Bell Tower ws first built
in YingXiang Temple in 1384,which used to mark the center of
city .It was moved to its present site in 1582 as a result of
the city's expansion promgram .
About
500meters northwest of the Bell Tower stands another magnificient
building ,the Drum Tower .It was built in 1380,four years earlier
than the Bell Tower .There used to a huge drum in the tower
which told the time at the dusk.The base of Drum Tower is 1,924square
meters in size, and 34meters high. The bell in the Bell Tower
and the drum in the Drum Tower have been referred to as "the
Morning Bell" and "the Dusk Drum".
History Museum
Shaanxi History Museum is a sizable national museum with a
wide rang of modern facilities .The entire building complex
assumes the architectural features of Tang Dynasty.It covers
an area of 70,000 square meters ,with a floor space of over
50,000 square meters .It houses the culture heritage of Shaanxi
Province and shows the development of Chinese civilization .The
state government invested 144 million yuan in establishment
of Shaanxi History Museum. It was completed and open to public
in June ,1991.
The museum shows a great deal of elegance and originally in
style .It asssumes the arechitectural features of ancient Chinese
palaces and courtyards.It houses 113,000historical and cultural
artifacts unearthed in Shaanxi .Its exhibition halls cover an
area of 1,100 square meters . The museum displays the historic
artifacts excavated in province.The exhibibition may be divided
in to seven major sections :the Prehistoric Age, the Zhou,the
Qin ,the Han ,the Wei , the Jin , the North, the South , the
Sui ,the Tang ,the Song , the Yuan , the Ming ,and the Qing
.
All the exhibitions vividly and systematically depict the history
of Shaanxi Province, ranging from 1,150,000 years ago to the
year 1840.Back in history ,11 dynasty established their capitals
in Shaanxi Province,with a duration of more than 1,000 years
.This area was established as the national capital by more dynasties
and for longer periods than any other place in China.In a way
the ancient history of Shaanxi is microcosm of Chinese history.
Huaqing Hot Springs
Huaqing Hot Springs. The hot springs are located 16 miles east
of Xian at the foot of Mount Lishan in a large park where there
are a number of public baths and some modern palaces built in
the Tang style. The hot springs, rich in minerals, were highly
regarded more than 3000 years ago. The Tang Emperor Xuanzong
often spent the winter here in the company of his favorite concubine,
Yang Guifei. Shortly afterwards, however, all the buildings
were destroyed by war. The new baths constructed in 1956 include
one called the Bath of Yang Guifei ( Guifei - Honorable Concubine).
