Site of Xanadu
元上都遗址
China · Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
In brief
Shangdu, founded for Kublai Khan, first served as a capital and later as the summer center of the Yuan rulers. The city plan documented through excavations shows a combination of Chinese urban design and the Mongol way of life.
What was found?
- 1Palace and temple remains
The city contains mounds indicating palace and temple structures, as well as remains investigated through excavation. These allow the capital's administrative and worship areas to be identified.
- 2Mingde Gate remains
Remains of the imperial city's Mingde Gate have been preserved. The gate is important for understanding the capital's entrance layout and connections within the city.
- 3City walls
The wall lines of the palace city, imperial city, and outer city can be traced on the ground. These boundaries make visible the capital's plan, divided into areas with different functions.
- 4Tiefan'gang Canal
The canal and other water structures are material remains of the organization of the city's surroundings. They help explain the capital's relationship with the river and surrounding land.
- 5Tombs associated with the city
The burial areas support historical information that Mongol and Han communities lived in Shangdu. They contribute to investigating the cultural composition of the city's population.
What does it point to?
Shangdu's plan shows that China's settled capital tradition and Mongol nomadic life came together in the same center. Traces of nomadic camping areas alongside palaces and walls indicate that the administrative center maintained its connection with steppe life.
What did it teach us?
- It documented that Mongol and Han traditions were both present in the city plan.
- It showed that the capital's sections consisting of stone and earthen structures were designed together with areas for nomadic use.
- The tombs provided material evidence of the presence of different communities in the city.
Images
Record
- Culture
- Mongol Empire and Yuan Dynasty
- Coordinates
- 42.3580°, 116.1851°
Sources
Nearby excavations
- Niuheliang Archaeological Site 297 km
- Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian 298 km
- Shimao 651 km
- Yin Xu 712 km
- Taosi Archaeological Site 825 km
- Erlitou Archaeological Site 905 km
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- 12.000
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Arkeoloji Dergisi ↗
All excavation sites (385)
Türkiye
- Acemhöyük
- Aizanoi
- Alabanda
- Alacahöyük
- Amos
- Ani
- Aphrodisias
- Arslantepe Mound
- Aspendos
- Assos
- Ayanis Fortress
- Aşıklı Höyük
- Barcın Höyük
- Blaundus
- Boncuklu Höyük
- Can Hasan I
- Carchemish
- Claros Sanctuary
- Clazomenae
- Domuztepe
- Ephesus
- Euromus
- Gordion
- Göbekli Tepe
- Hadrianopolis in Paphlagonia
- Hattusha
- Hierapolis
- Iasos
- Kaman-Kalehöyük
- Karahantepe
- Karatepe-Aslantaş
- Kaunos
- Kibyra
- Knidos
- Kültepe-Kanesh
- Laodicea on the Lycus
- Letoon Sanctuary
- Limyra
- Magnesia on the Maeander
- Medieval City of Beçin
- Metropolis in Ionia
- Miletus
- Myra
- Nemrut Dağ
- Nysa on the Maeander
- Olympus in Lycia
- Oymaağaç Höyük — Nerik
- Patara
- Pergamon
- Perge
- Phaselis
- Priene
- Sagalassos
- Sanctuary of Apollo at Didyma
- Sanctuary of Labraunda
- Sapinuwa
- Sardis
- Sayburç
- Side
- Stratonikeia
- Tell Atchana – Alalakh
- Teos
- Tripolis on the Meander
- Troy
- Uluburun Shipwreck
- Xanthos
- Yenikapı – Theodosian Harbour Excavations
- Yeşilova Höyük
- Yumuktepe
- Zerzevan Castle
- Zeugma
- Zincirli Höyük — Sam'al
- Çatalhöyük
- Çavuştepe Fortress
- Çayönü
- Çukuriçi Höyük
