Xiaotazi City Site

Xiaotazi City Site

The Xiaotazi City Site is a cultural relic protection unit of Liaoning Province.

The Xiaotazi City Site (including the Pagoda Temple Pagoda) is located in Xiaotazi Village, Haoguantun Township, Kangping County, dating back to the Liao Dynasty.

The site is built on a relatively flat earthen mound on the west bank of the Liao River, with the river flowing south not far to the north and east. To the south, undulating hills stretch in a southwestward direction. The terrain to the west and north is slightly lower, followed by rolling hills extending northwestward. Today, people have built houses along the hillsides, forming a village. The site is named Xiaotazi after the Liao Dynasty Buddhist pagoda located outside the west gate of the city. Fifty meters east of the pagoda lies the Qizhou City Site. The construction of this ancient city confirms that this area has been a vital east-west passage since ancient times—a crossing point along the Liao River.

Qizhou is a square-shaped earthen city. Though not excavated or accurately measured, each side is approximately 380 meters long. The current city walls stand two to three meters high, with a base width of about ten meters and a top width of roughly two meters and fifty centimeters. The rammed earth layers are eight to ten centimeters thick. There are three gates—east, west, and south. The ruins of the eastern barbican gate are still clear, the breach at the southern gate site is visible, and the western gate has been reduced to a road junction. A moat can be faintly traced around the city site. The city site is well-preserved, with the land both inside and outside the city now used for farming.

Fifty meters outside the west gate of the city site stands an 11-story, solid, dense-eave-style Liao Dynasty Buddhist pagoda with an octagonal base. It stands majestically, symbolizing the splendid ancient ethnic culture.

On October 16, 1980, the People's Government of Kangping County announced the Liao Dynasty Qizhou City and the pagoda ruins as key cultural relic protection units.

On October 20, 1981, the Tieling Regional Administrative Office announced it as a key cultural relic protection unit of the Tieling region.

On December 20, 1988, the Xiaotazi City Site was designated by the People's Government of Liaoning Province as part of the fourth batch of provincial-level cultural relic protection units in Liaoning Province.

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Liaoning Provincial Cultural Relic Protection Units