Along the vast desert Gobi, from the ancient city of Loulan to the south, the southernmost ancient castle of this "Silk Road" is in sight; This is a county town under the jurisdiction of Hotan area. Because of its rich historical creation, it was named Minfeng County. It is this Minfeng county, which is surrounded by ancient towns. It is particularly worth mentioning that the ruins of the ancient country of Virginia have attracted worldwide attention.
Speaking of the current population, let's look at such a set of data: the county covers an area of more than 50,000 square kilometers with a population of less than 40,000; But even so, Minfeng County is the first of the eight counties (cities) in Hotan area to get rid of poverty, so there is a saying that "things enrich the people and make them strong". Perhaps this is also the case. This magical land located in the south of Taklimakan Desert and the north of the towering Kunlun Mountain has been favored by many princes and nobles in such a distant period. Both the city and the capital are built here.
Xiao Minfeng, Great Country Hou; Let's see how rich people in history are.
The Niya site is a place that has haunted Chinese and foreign archaeologists for generations. Niya is the site of Guo Jing in the Han and Jin Dynasties, which is located in the desert area about 0/50 km north of Minfeng County. The site is centered on the stupa and scattered in an area 25 kilometers long from north to south and 5 to 7 kilometers wide from east to west. At present, there are houses, courtyards, cemeteries, pagodas, Buddhist temples, fields, orchards, animal pens, canals, pottery kilns, smelting sites and other relics found in the site.
The site of Niya is an ideal country, a country in the Han and Jin Dynasties from the 2nd century BC to the 5th century AD. In addition to the ruins of the city, there were wooden products, bronzes, ironware, pottery, stone tools, woolen goods, coins, wooden slips and other items used by residents at that time. And the sinter and carbon residue left over from ironmaking at that time.
The mystery of Niya has always been a world-class mystery. In the Taklimakan desert, a lifeless world without people, water and green has never seen its logo. Moreover, in Uighur, "Niya" is a place that cannot be traced back, or the road is too far to visit, and no one can release it. This is a forgotten place.
Although Andiel is not as famous as Niya, it is a household name in Minfeng and even the whole southern Xinjiang. The ancient city of Andiel is located in the desert hinterland about 27 kilometers southeast of Minfeng Andiel Farm, at the lower reaches of Andiel River.
The ruins of the ancient city of Andil, consisting of pagodas and monasteries, were built in the Han Dynasty and gradually abandoned in 1 1 century. The ancient city of Andiel is an important relic of the Han and Tang Dynasties south of the Silk Road. At the beginning of this century, when the British explorer Stan stole documents from Tibet, Borneo and China and a number of exquisite cultural relics; It is found that there are circular city sites, Buddhist temples, stupas and cemeteries in the site.
The decline and abandonment of the ancient city of Andiel was about after the middle Tang Dynasty. With the decrease of the flow of the Andiel River, the ancient city gradually disappeared.
The ancient city of Xiayangtake is located about 0/50km to the east of Minfeng County, and about 30km to the east of Andiel Ranch. The ancient city of Xiayangtake is also the site of an early ideal city. The whole ancient city consists of three parts, namely stupa, Tiyingmu ancient city and Daozileke ancient city. These three parts are distributed linearly, the core part is self-contained and stands in a quadrangle, and the wall is made of clay. The walls of these ancient cities are still well preserved.
There are two attached cities in the southeast of the ancient city of Xiayangtake, and there are residential sites in the city at present. 500 meters west of the ancient city, there is also a Buddhist temple tower site with a height of 10 meter. According to scientific research, the ancient city of Xiayangtake should be an ideal country from 206 BC to 790 AD from the Western Han Dynasty to the prosperous Tang Dynasty.
The site of Tanglancheng is also located less than 30 kilometers near Andiel Ranch in Minfeng County. The ancient city was built in the Tang Dynasty, with a circular wall, a diameter of about 200 meters, a residual height of 3 to 4 meters, and a city gate. The city gate faces southeast, and there are still two wooden city gates.
From the ruins, the houses in Tanglan City are orderly and the arrangement of houses is clearly visible. Moreover, a tomb was found in the center of the city, facing south, and the walls and roof were still well preserved; A jewel-encrusted ring and a gold earring were also found here. Wool cloth, cotton cloth, cotton, felt, spinning wheel, spindle, wood products, earrings, rings, jade articles, copper rings, iron blocks, orange snails, wheat ears, millet and other items were also found in the soil of Tang Lan city wall.
According to scientific research, Tanglancheng should be the site of Lancheng Town in Pisha Prefecture of the Western Regions in Tang Dynasty.
Therefore, for thousands of years, between the clouds; Sometimes the seemingly insignificant land of a city is full of endless history, as well as the glorious past and immortal legends of those years and dynasties.