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the year around. This place is a pleasant
blend of 'land of fire', 'land of wind','land of sand', and
'land of oases'. It is a museum of natural georgaphy and landforms,
created by nature, but perfected by man.When we say Turpan
is rich, it is because it has grape,Hami melon, and long staple
cotton which are well-known native products sold throughout
the world, and are the three treasures of the land. The salt,
coal, and mirabillite deposits are plentiful, and their future
development prospects are awesome.The Treasure Land is true
to name. The residents of Turpan have not only created a glorious
history with their wisdom, talent, and diligence,but they
are also building a thriving, affluent and beautiful
Turpan today.We say Turpan is ancient it is because like Dunhuang,
it was another glistening pearl on the Silk Road. There are
the ruins of Gaochang and Jiaohe of the Han and Tang dynasties,
the Thousand Buddha Caves dug since the Jin and Tang dynasties,
and the thousand-year old dried corpses of the Astana tombs;
and unique Islamic architectural wonder of the Sugong Minaret,
and the unearthed relics. Turpan is a land that has the best
of historical relics and ruins of an ancient culture. The
rise of the Chinese Dunhuang - Turpan Studies has opened up
a brand new path for the development and application of this
precious source of historical relics.When we say Turpan is
young, it is because as a city for modern tourism, it has
only just taken its initial step, much, much more needs doing
and to be done, but the future is bright. Today, the people
of Turpan are in the midst of an opening-up environment, and
they are striving for the prosperity of the land and contributing
their all to its four modernizations. The Turpan people are
ready in a new way, and their arms are open to welcome from
near and far, friends who come to tour, to do business, to
participate in cultural and scholarly exchanges and research,
and together with them, write a new page of praise on the
cultural traditions of the Silk Road.Prepared by the Editorial
Board of the XINJIANG, CHINA - Turpan Album.
Tourists visiting Turpan -- without exception
-- have the desire to penetrate through the mysterious veil
of this ancient basin and to have a taste of its enchanting
,unique, and exotic scenery and customs. When one climbs a
top the lonely yet magnificent Jiaohe with the sunset glow
still offsetting the background, or when one enters the ancient
city of Gaochang imbued with a solemn and stirring atmosphere,
or when one walks into the Bezkilik Thousand-Buddha Caves
riddled with gaping wounds, or when one admires the superb
craftsmanship manifested in the Emin Minaret, he will suddenly
realize that what are being unfolded before his eyes is none
the less than a brilliant picture scroll of Turpan history.
The ancient city of Jiaohe is located on a lonely island shaped
like a willow leaf about 10 kms to the west of the city of
Turpan. It is 1,650 meters long and 300 meters wide. Steep
cliffs surrounding the city renders it a strategic point easy
to defend and difficult to attack. A thoroughfare traversing
the city from north to south naturally divides the city into
two main parts: the East and the West. The northern part of
the city are chiefly temples and mosques. Thanks to little
rainfall, the ancient official residence, living quarters,
pottery kilns, temples' stupas,wells and streets can still
be seen. According to historical records, from 108 B.C. to
450 A.D. Jiaohe served as the capital city of the former
Cheshi (a kindom there). In the first years of the Tang Dynasty
(640-658 A.D.), the Commanding Office of Anxi, the highest
military and administrative authority of the Western Region,
was stationed there. It was in the latter half of the fourteenth
century that this thousand-year-old city was destroyed by
fire.
The ancient city of Gaochang lies in Halahezhuo, a rural township
about 40 kms to the east of the city of Turpan. Tourists today
can still see the towering city wall reflecting the magnificence
of its heyday. The layout of the ancient city is roughly an
irregular sqaure in three levels: the outer city, the inner
city and the palace. At the foundation the wall is 12 meters
thick, 11.5 meters high with a circumference of 5 kms. In
the first century B.C., the garrisoned troops of the West
Han Dynasty were stationed there to open up wasteland, and
Gaochang gained the status of a prefecture. In 450 A.D. the
remaining force of North Liang wiped out the former Kingdom
of Cheshi, Gaochang was set up as a temporary town. In 327
A.D. Gaochang was promoted to the position of being the political,
economic and cultural center of the Turpan Basin,and in 460
A.D. became the capital of the Gaochang Kingdom. In 640 A.D.
Gaochang was included into the map of the Tang Dynasty which
set up the Xizhou Prefecture; under the Prefecture were five
counties: Gaochang, Jiaohe, Liuzhong, Tianshan and Puchang.
From the middle of the 9th century, it was the capital city
of Gaochang Kingdom set up by a people called the Huihe. In
1275 A.D. the nomadic noble named Duwa rose in rebellion and
laid siege to Huozhou (Gaochang) with a force of 120,000 strong.
The siege lasted for six months and Barshu Alte,the Huihe
king of Gaochang died heroically in battle. Consequently the
city of Gaochang was totally ruined.To the north of Gaochang
is the famous Astana-Halahezhuo Burial Ground, where archaeologists
have unearthed tens of thousands of cultural relics from over
400 ancient graves. Among the relics the most treasured ones
are ancient documents and superb quality silk fabrics.The
burial ground was in use around the 3rd to the 8th century.
Those who were buried there include: Juqufengdai, Mayor of
the Gaochang Prefecture during the Dynasty of Northern Liang,
Zhang Xiong, a famous general of Gaochang Kingdom, and Gaoyao,
Vice Commander of the Belting Military Region during the Tang
Dynasty. The corpses of Zhang Xiong and others have dried
up but their hair and beards can still be seen and their facial
countenance still show their awe-inspring majestic bearing.The
Bezkilik Thousand-Buddha Caves are situated in the middle
part of the Flaming Mountian's Wood Valley. 83 grottoes are
extant,among which more than 40 have mural paintings inside
them. The total area of mural paintings exceeds 1,200 square
meters. The mural paintings of the earlier period of Huihe
Gaochang are highly recommended for their strict composition,
bold and vigorous lines, and plump figures. They represent
a continuation of the painting style of the Mogao Grottoes
typical of the Tang Dynasty. The representative subject is
predestined relationship as in such stories as "The Child-Manjue's
transformation". It is widely acknowledged that this
is the most important,best-preserved and most representative
art treasure in Huihe's Buddhist art.The Emin Minaret (also
named Sugong Minaret) stands to the north of the ancient city
of Anle. It is the most magnificent and majestic minaret of
Xinjiang Islamic architecture. It is 37 meters high, built
of bricks and timber. Inside, the minaret has a 72-step spiral
stair that leads directly to the top. Eminhoja was a Uygur
leader of Turpan, and owing to his outstanding contribution
in upholding the unification of China,he was made a prince
by the Qing Court. In the 42nd year during the reign of Emperor
Qianlong (1777) of the Qing Dynasty this minaret was completed
when Eminhoja was 83 years old. His official residence was
where what is now the Lukeqing Townghip of Shanshan County,
i.e.,the famous Liuzhong of the Han and Tang Dynasties.In
the recent years several surveys of cultural relics and ruins
have indicated that in the Turpan Basin there are a total
of 175 historical ruins which can be divided into a number
of categories such as: ruins of the Neolithic Age, ruins of
ancient cities, signal tower, ancient graves,grottoes with
Buddhist carvings, rock paintings, ancient mail posts, ancient
ethnic buildings, etc. Thanks to the uniquely favorable natural
conditions of sparse rainfall and dry weather, historical
relics and ruins both above and underground can be preserved
for a very long time.Though many centuries have elapsed, they
are still intact and free from decay. When unearthed, thc
original colours were as good as new.That is why Turpan is
granted the title of a "natural museum".
A saying goes: "Anyone visiting Xinjiang
without seeing Turpan is bound to regret his incomplete tour
of the Northwest."The Turpan Basin is located in the
eastern part of Xi~jiang. The Basin is 245 kms long from east
to west and 75 kms wide
from north to south. It covers a total area of 50,147 square
kilometers of which about 4,050 square kilometers are below
sea level. The basin slopes from the north toward the south,
and the land has very strong irradiation of sunlight. The
surrounding high mountains make it difficult for the heat
to escape so this special geographic condition gives rise
to a unique climate environment which is dry and windy. In
the summer, the temperature at the center of the basin reaches
47.6 ~C with the highest record of 48.9 ~C . The ground temperature
is around 70 ~C , which sometimes reaches as high as 82.3
~C . That is why in history Turpan Basin has been called "the
land of fire". A saying goes that "on sand mounds
eggs can be cooked, and on the rock, cakes can be baked."
There is a folktale about "a county magistrate who had
to do his office work with his body immersed in a tub of water
to keep cool."
The hot weather in Turpan is reinforced by dryness, and its
strong winds. Statistics shows that the average rainfall is
merely 16mm, while the evaporation reaches 3,000mm. Spring
is the basin's main windy season. Winds of force 8 or above
is common.Even hurricanes of force 12 or over is not unrare.
Toksun County, located in the western part of the Basin, has
long been known as the "windy city".The Flaming
Mountain known far and wide resembles a fiery dragon winding
from east to west. It extends for 100 kilometers with the
maximum width of 10 kilometers. The Mountain is 851 meters
above sea level and what is seen above the
ground mainly consists of arenaceous rock and red mudstone
of the Jurassic Period, the Cretaceous Period and the Permian
Period. The colour of the rocks is a brownish red and the
mountain slopes are full of crevasses. When the sunlight hits
the mountain slope, the red is intercheckered with blue resembling
many fiery dragons. Wu Cheng'en, a Ming-Dynasty novelist,
wrote a number of very interesting stories around the subject
of the Flaming Mountain, thus making the Mountain famous all
over the world, attracting an endless flow of tourists from
both China and abroad.The Grape Valley is a small valley of
the Flaming Mountain. The Valley is 8 kilometers long with
the maximum width of 2 kilometers, with a small stream winding
through it. On both sides of the valley are seen layer upon
layer of grape trellises
interspersed with flowers and fruit trees. Farmhouses dot
the village, and high on the mountain slopes are some "cooling
houses". In the summer the cooling houses are refuges
from the suffocating heat. They are the tourists' favorite
retreafln ISPI
inclemently hot Turpan.The Aydingkol Lake represents the lowest
point of China. Its water surface is 154 meters below sea
level, and the lake bottom is flat with shallow water. The
lake-bed is 40 kilometers long from east to west and 8 kilometers
wide from north to
south. The depth of water is only 1 meter at the deepest point.
In the western part there is still water which is bitterly
salt. The rate of mineralization of the water is as high as
200 grams per litre. As a result of strong evaporation and
condensation of the
years, there are in the lake bottom and nearby some nitre
mines and salt mines.
Because of the serious lack of rain and snow, Turpan Basin
has since very ancient times been relying on underground water
irrigation. Thus, karez, a marvellous water irrigation system,
becomes a unique scene in Turpan. The Karez is a system of
skillfully drawing water from underground by digging a string
of underground channels. The karez system consists of wells,
hidden channels and open channels. Wells are linked to hidden
channel which in turn is linked to open channel. The underground
water is channeled to farmland by both the hidden and open
channels. The earth from the dug wells and channels is piled
around the well, forming small mounds resembling craters of
volcanoes. A bird's-eye view reveals many wells forming a
straighttline which is a grand sight. What is more interesting
is that in the deep of winter the well's opening is warm with
vapor,while in the summer it is cool and breezy, and a traveler
can cool off sitting by it.Shifting sand of the years has
formed deserts within the basin. The Kumtag Desert lies to
the south of Shanshan county with a total area of 2,500 square
kilometers. And the converging winds have brought about clusters
of sand hills in the shape of pyramids. The place has also
been developed as a tourist resort where visitors can have
a full view of the magnificence of the desert without actually
venturing out into it.
Through long-time practice, people in Turpan have discovered
the fact that the sand in the desert heated by sunlight can
be used for curing various diseases including rheumatism and
arthritis. Every year when the hot summer approaches, patients
from everywhere come to Turpan. They put up simply-equipped
tents as shelter against the hot sun and then bury the diseased
part of their body into the burning-hot sand as part of a
"fire oasis sand-therapy" which is a combination
of thermotherapy,massage and magnetic therapy. The scene is
very much like sunbathing on a beach, which is a unique marvel
of Turpan.
The Turpan Basin boasts of a large variety
of geological and topographical features and it is also endowed
with very rich natural resources. In "The Book of Hun
-- Record of the West Region", there is a description:
"The land of the Cheshi Kingdom is fertile and beautiful."
In "The Book of Northern Dynasty -- Record of the Western
Region" Turpan Basin is depicted as where "The climate
is mildly warm, and the land is fertile. Rice and wheat can
be harvested twice a year, silkworm breeding is suitable,
fruit is abundant, and rich in paint, has is a kind of grass
called the sheep*thorn on which honey is grown,tasting good.
There is a highly developed irrigation system. Cheshi also
produces red salt which is very delicious, an white salt as
clean as jade. People in Gaochang use white salt to fill their
pillows, which they even present to the imperial court of
China as tribute. Grape wine is abundant ...... In the kindom
sheep and horses are herded to obscure places to prevent them
from being robbed, and where cannot find, outsiders."
These historical records indicate that ever since very ancient
times the agriculture in the Turpan Basin has been highly
developed and the salt mines have long been explored and utilized.The
total area of arable land in Turpan Basin amounts to 700,000
mu. Farm crops consist chiefly of wheat and sorghum.As there
is plenty of light and heat resources, great day*night temperature
difference and little rainfall, the grape, Hami-melon and
long~staple cotton produced here are highly recommended in
the world for their excellent quality. Grapes grown in Turpan
fall into more than 10 varieties, such as the Horse Udder,
seedless White, Red Grape, Kashhar Grape, Suo-Suo Grape, etc.
Since 1960s, 300 new strains of grapes have been introduced
from abroad for trial planting, thus substantially enriching
the variety of grapes in the Basin. Hami melon is another
special local product of the Turpan Basin, boasting of such
fine-quality varieties as Crisp Red-Core, Black Eyebrow, Honey
Sweet, Paotai Red, Bag of Sugar and Golden Dragon. A large
amount of Hami melons are exported abroad and sold to other
places in China. It is reputed as the ~most precious fruit".
Besides, this famous land of melon and fruit also abounds
with water-melon, pear, apricot, peach, pomegranate, mulberry,
fig, sand date,
etc. The bumper harvests of melons and fruits bring about
a thriving processing industry. The Turpan Melon and Fruit
Company and Hongliuhe Fruit Farm, the Shanshan County Fruit
Winery, etc. have installed advanced equipment from other
places of China or from abroad by means of joint management.
As a result, the pure grape juice wines they brew are highly
reputed for their superb quality and mellow taste. Other products
they offer, such as grape juice, Hami melon juice and mulberry
juice as well as various kinds of canned fruits are also priced
products. The raisins of Turpan have long been enjoying the
fame of "green pearls of China" for their colour,
mellow taste and delicious sour/sweet flavour. Dried Hami
melon, dried apricot, and preserved peach also demonstrate
their outstanding tastiness. All these products are favorites
of the tourists.Long-staple cotton is an important raw material
for the textile industry. The cotton grown in Turpan is pure-white
with excellent spinnability. 80% of the cotton is up to the
quality standards of Grade-1 and Grade-2 cotton, which is
exported to Japan, the USSR and Romania, enjoying an enthusiastic
international market. The Basin is also rich in vegetables.
At the foot of the Flaming Mountain, the spring season arrives
earlier than anywhere else in Xinjiang and, therefore, the
spring vegetables
grown there are on the market earlier than those of any other
places of Xinjiang and are sold in Urumqi and other cities.
The Basin is surrounded by large tracts of grassland on which
sheep, horses, cattle, donkeys, and camels are fattened.Along
with the development of modern science and technology, the
abundant resources of Turpan are being further explored and
utilized.On the southern slope of the Bogda Peak there is
a glacier with a total area of 120 square kilometers. In order
to make full use of the water sources, reservoirs have been
built, such as the Kokya, Hongshan and Shengjin reservoirs.
The water is also used to develop fish farming. Initial survey
indicates that the reserve of mirabilite in the Aydingkol
Lake reaches 25 million tons and that of salt 60 million tons.
These constitute an advantageous condition for the development
of the chemical industry. The Seven-Spring Lake Chemical Plant
which was set up in 1959 produces 50,000 tons of anhydrous
sulphuric acid,
15,000 tons of sodium sulphate, 85,000 tons of refined salt;
all the products enjoy high quality and low cost, with an
enthusiastic market both at home and abroad. Salt pillow,
which was used in the ancient times as a tribute to the imperial
court, is produced in the Salt Mountain. The salt mine-bed
is as thick as scores of meters, crystal clear and suitable
for carving artistic works and its artistic effect is similar
to that of ice carving. The Turpan Basin has considerable
coal deposit, too. Other metal and non-metal ores being dug
include: iron, copper, gold, manganese, petroleum, gypsum,
limestone, expanded perlite, quartz,
marble, asbestos, boron, crude soda, and mineral water. Geological
prospects show that Turpan might be the third most promising
basin for finding petroleum next only to the Junggar Basin
and the Tarim Basin. In the Turpan Basin thermo-power stations,
hydro-power stations and train power stations spread all over.
The inexhaustible light and thermal resources and wind
power resources have a bright future for further development.
"Wear fur in the morning, but gauze
at noon; hug the stove while enjoying melons" is a popular
saying in Xinjiang. The first half of the saying depicts the
huge temperature difference within the same day, while the
latter half is a description of what
one sees in Turpan. Hami melons and watermelons in Turpan
can be preserved until the following spring. In the winter,
on melon stalls, a fire is built for warming while the hawker
sells his watermelon. When visitors see this unique scene
they cannot
but be attracted to sit by the stove and enjoy the melon.
The total area of the Turpan Prefecture is 6,728 square kilometers
consisting of Turpan City, Shanshan County and Toksun County
inhabited by a population of 460,000 composed of Uygurs,Hans
and Huis. With the Uygurs making up 70% of the population.
Turpan City is the political, economic and cultural center
of the prefecture and historically it was an important strategic
spot on the Silk Road. Today, Turpan is well-known as a city
of grapes, equipped with complete tourist facilities. The
population of the city proper is 60,000. And in the suburbs
there are
grapevines, orchards, karezes, as well as ancient cities,
ancient minarets, ancient graveyards, thousand-buddha grottoes
and ancient Islamic buildings, spread all over. Turpan is
a famous city with a long history, situated in the northwest
of China, Its
unique feature typical of the West Region and its colorful
ethnic customs are attracting an endless flow o[ both Chinese
and foreign tourists.The Uygurs and the Huis are believers
of Islam, and they pray five times a day. Each year they observe
two important
festivals: the Lesser Bayram and the Corban, They strictly
adhere to the teachings of the Koran, and the convention of
not eating pork. The Uygur people are simple and honest, and
they respect the old and care for the young. The are hospitable
and attach great importance to courtesy. When guests arrive,
the most senior person has priority of entrance. The guests
sit on carpets and young do not smoke or drink in front of
the old. When meeting their seniors, friends or relatives,
they hold up the left hand to touch the chest with the upper
part of the body leanding slightly forward, as a way of paying
respect and regards.
Before and after the elderly people have had their meals as
guests or in their own house, they often stroke their cheeks
with both hands to make a "Duwa" (a religious ritual
of blessing.) Sometimes even after shaking hands with a friend,
the old one
would also make a "Duwa". All the people irrespective
sex and age are fond of wearing small square hats bearing
colourful patterns. The patterns are embroidered bright and
beautiful. Women are fond of wearing long skirts. In winter
they wear short coats over the skirts, and thick underwear
to keep off the cold. They love to wear ornaments such as
earrings, bracelets and necklaces. As they use vegetable dye
on their eyebrows beginning in childhood, so their brows are
extraordinarily thick and black. Young girls comb their hair
into more than ten plaits, looking all the more lovely. The
Uygurs like milk-tea. "Nan", one of their staple
foods, is a bread made in their home-ovens. The bread is dry
and,therefore, can be preserved for a long time. Another staple
food is pilaf prepared with rice, lamb, carrots and raisins.
It is colorful and delicious. It is also a 'must' when entertaining
guests or observing festivals. Daily fare include hand-stretched
noodles and piece noodles. Barbacued whole lamb, shish kebab,
baked stuffed bun, thin-wrapped steamed stuffed bun and boiled
lamb are famous foods of local ethnic flavour.The ethnic architecture
of Turpan has its own style. In particular, the mosques and
mazars (graves of saints), with their domed roofs, demonstrate
distinct features of Islamic architecture. Houses built with
wood and mud or with sun-dried mud bricks are the traditional
buildings of the locality. Entering a farmer's courtyard,
once can generally see a grape trellis, The houses usually
have quite deep corridors. Inside the room is a raised dirt
platform floor, On it is laid a felt mattress for sitting
or lying down. The walls are usually half-covered with fabric,
and the Uygurs are especially fond of hanging expensive rugs
on the walls as decoration. Many adobes with ventilation holes
on all sides can be seen everywhere. These are the traditional
drying rooms for air-drying grapes.The Uygurs are highly respected
for their excellent handicrafts. Traditional products include:
felt rugs and carpets, silk fabrics, printed cotton fabrics,
flower-patterned hats, knives and high boots. Their folk embroidery
shows a strong local style
and ethnic features. In summer, women love to wear dresses
made of "Atlas" silk fabric. This is a unique Uygur
creation with bright patterns and sharp contrast of colours.
Wearing dresses made of this fabric, the women seem to become
colorful clouds moving gracefully in the sky. Turpan is also
a famous land of song and dances. All the Uygurs, men and
women, old and young, are unexceptionally fond of dancing.
Especially on holidays, festivals, wedding ceremonies or welcoming
parties, they would organize grand parties to sing and dance,
A very popular mass singing and dancing party is called the
"Mexrep". It is a combination of singing, dancing
and other folk amusements. At a mexrep men and women would
gather to sing and dance to their heart's content to musical
accompaniment.
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