Ancient City Site of Xiyingzi

Ancient City Site of Xiyingzi

The Ancient City Site of Xiyingzi is located 1,500 meters southwest of Xiyingzi Tun in Dajia Sheng Village, Dawujiatun Town, Fuxin Mongolian Autonomous County. Both inside the site and in the surrounding area are farmlands. It lies 300 meters southwest of Yusi River. The terrain of the ancient city site is flat and open, offering a view stretching over 20 li from atop the city walls. In the late Warring States period, the State of Yan defeated the Donghu people and built the Great Wall. The “Biography of the Xiongnu” in Records of the Grand Historian states, “Later, the virtuous general of Yan, Qin Kai, was sent as a hostage to the Hu people, who trusted him greatly. Upon his return, he attacked and routed the Donghu, driving them away for a thousand li. Yan also built the Great Wall, extending from Zao Yang to Xiang Ping, and established the commanderies of Shang Gu, Yu Yang, You Bei Ping, Liao Xi, and Liao Dong to defend against the Hu.” The Yan Great Wall passed through what is now Fuxin territory, and the State of Yan also set up defensive fortresses and barriers in the Fuxin area. Numerous Yan city sites have also been discovered successively. The Xiyingzi City Site in Dawujiatun Town is one of them.

This city site is square-shaped, constructed with rammed earth, measuring 110 meters in both length and width, oriented at 190 degrees. The collapsed walls are 7–8 meters wide and 3–5 meters high. Currently, the southern, northern, and western walls of the city site remain, while the eastern wall no longer exists. The site has been turned into farmland. The surface of the site is scattered with numerous artifacts related to daily life and construction, such as gray pottery rope-patterned tiles, tubular tiles, gray pottery dou handles, and gray pottery segmented dou handles. About 50 meters north of the city site lies the Great Wall line, which encircles the north and west sides of the site. The northern section is 220 meters long, 5 meters wide at the collapse, and 0.5–1.0 meter high. The western section is 440 meters long, 2–3 meters wide at the collapse, and 0.5–1.0 meter high. The Ancient City Site of Xiyingzi is one of many military fortresses built in the late Warring States period to defend against northern ethnic minorities. This site was also a crucial route from You Bei Ping Commandery to Liao Dong Commandery during the Yan, Qin, and Han periods. As such, it held extremely important geographical significance at the time and played a significant defensive role.

Protected area: Within the city and within 30 meters outside the outer base of the city walls.

Construction control zone: Outside the protected area, 30 meters east, and 40 meters west, south, and north constitute Class I construction control zone. An additional 50 meters outside the Class I construction control zone forms the Class II construction control zone.

Dawujiatun Town: Dawujiatun Town of Fuxin Mongolian Autonomous County is located 36 kilometers northwest of the county seat. It borders Hongmaozi Township and Bajiazi Township to the east, Yusi Town and Taiping Township to the west, Qijiazi Township and Zidutai Township to the south, and Fuxingdi Town to the north. Its geographic coordinates are 120 degrees east longitude and 42 degrees north latitude. It stretches 36 kilometers from north to south and 16 kilometers from east to west, featuring a semi-humid continental monsoon climate with an average annual temperature of 23 degrees Celsius. The town administers 10 administrative villages with a population of 19,000. It possesses vast land resources and abundant mineral resources. The total land area of the town... More details about Dawujiatun Town++

Further reading:

· Seventh Batch of Cultural Relics Protection Units of Liaoning Province