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 The author: Fan Chen |
The fortresses and passes along the Great Wall in Dunhuang county of northwest China’s Gansu have seen the passage of time, periods of prosperity and decline, battle and peace. The relics of the Hecang Fortress and the Yumen Pass are the epitomes of a period from two thousands years ago.
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A landmark stone sign denotes the relics of the Hecang Fortress or Big Square City in Dunhuang county of northwest China's Gansu province. The historic site, located 60 kilometers away from the Dunhuang county, had been a military warehouse for grains, clothes and hay for soldiers and horses in the northwest Great Wall's forts and watchtowers since the West Han dynasty(BC 202- 9 AD). [Photo by Fan Chen] |
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The clay-made wall is exposed to high winds in northwest China's Gobi desert. The former military warehouse had played a very import role in frontier defense from BC 104 to AD 420. [Photo by Fan Chen] |
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The name of Yumen Pass, or the Small Square City, is carved on a stone at the exit of the Yumen Pass historic site which is 90 kilometers northwest of Dunhuang county. The Yumen Pass once was an important gateway linking central China with the western regions of the Silk Road back in the Han Dynasty(BC 202- 9 AD ). [Photo by Fan Chen] |
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Yumen Pass relics, as part of the Silk Road project which has been jointly applied successfully by China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, is on the UNESCO world cultural heritage list. [Photo by Fan Chen] |
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Yumen Pass relics with its four gateways once served as a military command center.[Photo by Fan Chen] |
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The inside of the ruins of Yumen Pass in Dunhuang county of northwest China's Gansu province. With its 10-metre-high mud walls pierced by four gateways, the square enclosure covered more than 600 square metres (718 square yards). [Photo by Fan Chen] |
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The natural tableland north of the remains was once used for guarding the respective section of the area. [Photo by Fan Chen] |
