Ruins of the Western Han Ancient Temple in Qinghe

Ruins of the Western Han Ancient Temple in Qinghe

The ruins of the Western Han ancient temple in Qinghe is a cultural tourism attraction.

Destination Introduction

The ruins of the Western Han ancient city in Qinghe, also known as the ruins of the Zhu Fang Village ancient city, are located to the west of Zhu Fang Village, more than two li west of Qinghe Town. They are the remains of a military town from the Han Dynasty, covering an area of approximately one square kilometer.

Here there is a high terrace, with sections of earthen walls preserved on the west and south sides, the highest point reaching about 5 meters. The southern wall has a remaining length of 150 meters, and the western wall 115 meters. The walls were built using the board-pounding method, with the holes from the boards still visible. Excavated iron farming tools include hoes, shovels, axes, and moldboard plows; iron weapons include swords, halberds, knives, and a bronze sword tip; coins found include "ban liang," "san zhu," "wu zhu," "huo bu," "huo quan," as well as coin molds used for casting. Two bronze seals were also unearthed: one is a mother-and-son seal, with the son seal missing and the mother seal engraved with the four characters “Liu Yun Yin Xin” (Seal of Liu Yun); the other is a regular turtle-knob seal inscribed with “Wang Shang Si Yin” (Private Seal of Wang Shang).

In 1955 and 1958, two further trial excavations were carried out. Red pottery urns, coarse-handled dou vessels, and similar artifacts were found within the rammed earth of the city walls, all typical items from the Warring States period. The stratigraphy within the city is divided into two main layers: the upper layer contains relics from the Tang and Liao dynasties, while the lower layer holds relics from the Western and Eastern Han dynasties. Northwest of the ancient city lies a Han Dynasty burial site, which includes a large multi-chambered tomb with front, middle, rear, left, and right chambers. The tomb had been looted, but remaining burial objects included various pottery and lacquerware items, all specifically made as funerary objects.

Location: To the west of Zhu Fang Village, more than two li west of Qinghe Town

There are over ten ancient wells at the northeast corner of the city. The well rings were made from fired clay, with rope patterns on the outer walls and coiled cloud patterns on the inner walls. These were joined section by section and buried underground. At the bottom of the wells were high-necked jars and wu zhu coins, similar to those found in ancient wells at places like the White Cloud Temple and Taoran Pavilion. Scattered throughout the city are numerous Han Dynasty cylindrical tiles, flat tiles, and tile ends, some featuring coiled cloud patterns, character motifs, and the seal script phrase “Qian Qiu Wan Sui” (A Thousand Autumns and Ten Thousand Years). Entire rows of wall foundations and house bases are buried underground.

Beijing Haidian District