Beijing - Heicheng, the largest and best preserved ancient city along China's portion of the Silk Road, is being devoured by advancing sand dunes, state media said on Saturday.
Located about 25km south-east of Dalai Hubu in northern Inner Mongolia province, the archaeological site is well known for its ten-metre-high city walls and a pagoda dating back to the Xixia Dynasty (1038-1227), the Xinhua news agency said.
Heicheng is viewed as priceless by archaeologists worldwide, given that the Xixia dynasty left no official written documents.
But as the ecology of nearby Juyan oasis has continued to deteriorate over the past three decades, many previously stable sand dunes have started to move toward the archaeological site, Xinhua said.
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Heicheng is viewed as priceless by archaeologists worldwide Although some ecological projects have been carried out to curb the sprawling sand, archaeologists believe the danger has not been defused.
As a result, many parts of the city walls have been gradually reduced to debris.
Since it was discovered by a Russian explorer surnamed Potanin in 1886, Heicheng has become a draw for archaeologists worldwide.
After its founding in 1949, the People's Republic of China carried out two large-scale archaeological research projects at the site in 1983 and 1984.
Archaeologists excavated hundreds of Muslim tombs in the site dating back to the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), which are crucial to the study of the spread of Islamic culture in China. - Sapa-AFP
Many parts of the city walls have been gradually reduced to debris
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