The Balicheng Ruins

The Balicheng Ruins

The Balicheng Ruins is a national key cultural relics protection unit.

The Balicheng Ruins, commonly known as "Balicheng" (Eight-Li City) due to its perimeter of nearly eight Chinese li, is one of the provincial-level cultural heritage sites in Heilongjiang Province.

I. Geographic Location

The Balicheng Ruins are located 300 meters northwest of Dongbalili Village, Sizhan Town, Zhaodong City. They lie 3.5 kilometers northeast of Sizhan Town and 5 kilometers south of the main course of the Songhua River. The site stands atop an arc-shaped terrace on the left bank of the Songhua River. Its coordinates are 125°56′ east longitude and 45°45′ north latitude.

II. Current Condition of the Ruins

The Balicheng Ruins are roughly square-shaped, oriented at 135°, with four gates, each featuring a barbican. The northern and eastern barbican gates are centrally located, while the western and southern ones are slightly offset to the left.

The measured perimeter of the Balicheng Ruins is 3,761 meters, approximately 3.8 kilometers. The eastern wall is 922 meters long, the western wall 943 meters, and the northern wall 911 meters. There are 56 mound-like battlements (mamian) along the walls, with corner towers at each of the four corners. The distance between each mamian varies, ranging from a maximum of 67 meters to a minimum of 44 meters.

The city walls were built using rammed earth layered construction, with layers 10–15 centimeters thick. The walls are 4–5 meters high, reaching up to 5 meters at their highest point, and the base is 12 meters wide. A moat, 10 meters wide, encircles the city. The southern moat is the widest and deepest, about 7 meters deep, with a surface width of 23.5 meters and a bottom width of around 5–6 meters. The western moat is the shallowest, at about 4 meters deep. Outside the moat, there is an earthen embankment encircling the entire city, standing 1–1.5 meters above ground level and about 12 meters wide.

The bottom of the moats and the area between the walls and moats are covered with trees such as poplar, willow, and elm. The sides of the walls and both banks of the moats are overgrown with natural vegetation. In summer and autumn after early spring, the area around the Balicheng Ruins—both inside and outside the walls and moats—is lush with greenery and tobacco plants, shaded by trees, creating a habitat where butterflies flutter among flowers and birds chirp lively.

The interior of the city has long been cultivated as farmland. A dirt road runs through the city, connecting the northern and southern gates. Except for slight damage caused by locals digging earth near the eastern and southern gates in the past, the city walls, gates, battlements, and moats are largely well-preserved. Among the ancient forts discovered in Heilongjiang Province, it is the most intact.

III. Historical Background

The Balicheng Ruins were first built in the eighth year of the Tianhui era during the reign of Emperor Taizong of the Jin Dynasty (1130 AD), established as the prefecture of Zhaozhou. This was to commemorate Emperor Taizu of Jin, Aguda, “who laid the foundation of his kingship here,” and it was made subordinate to the Shangjing Route. This marked the beginning of the city’s establishment.

During the reign of Emperor Xizong of Jin, the ruling power over Zhaozhou was further strengthened, and it came under the jurisdiction of Huining Prefecture. By the time of Emperor Zhangzong, Zhaozhou’s status grew even more prominent. First, in the third year of Cheng’an (1198 AD), Emperor Zhangzong “reinstated it as the sacred and martial flourishing land of Emperor Taizu,” upgrading Zhaozhou to a military commandery called Wuxing. Then, in the fifth year of Cheng’an (1200 AD), a “canal transport office was established, with the transport intendant also managing the prefecture,” though this was later abolished. During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Jin, due to the severe destruction of Tai Prefecture making it uninhabitable, people from the Northeast Route Pacification Commission, including the Meng’an Mouke, flocked to Zhaozhou. This led to great difficulty in conscripting and transferring personnel from places like Tai Prefecture. Under these circumstances, Wu Gulundesheng, the defense commissioner of Zhaozhou, proposed “upgrading Zhaozhou to a military governorate, with the pacification commissioner also holding the post.” He also suggested “appointing two deputy pacification commissioners to separately govern Tai Prefecture and Yichun,” which Emperor Xuanzong approved. In the second year of Zhenyou (1214 AD), Zhaozhou was elevated to the Wuxing Military Commandery and the Pacification Commission was established.

Thus, during the Jin Dynasty, Zhaozhou reached its political peak. However, as the Jin Dynasty’s power declined and Genghis Khan of the Mongols rose, the military strength in the northeast, including Zhaozhou, weakened significantly. Some officials even refused to serve in Zhaozhou. For example, in the first year of Xingding (1217 AD), Puhannawujin of the Shangjing Provincial Administration returned to the capital after entering the court but left Jiangshan to guard Zhaozhou. Yet Jiangshan “was quite inclined to leave.” This indicated that the status of Jin Zhaozhou had become precarious.

Nevertheless, during the Jin Dynasty, Balicheng remained an important military stronghold established by the Jin in the northeast.

After the Yuan Dynasty overthrew the Jin, the area where Zhaozhou was located became part of the territory of Prince Ochigin. Zhaozhou was abolished in the early Yuan Dynasty but was re-established as a prefecture in the 30th year of Yuan (1293 AD). In the first year of Yuanzhen (1295 AD), it was designated as the Zhaozhou Tuntian Ten Thousand Households Commandery.

In the early Ming Dynasty, the prefecture was abolished. In the seventh year of the Yongle era during the reign of Emperor Chengzu (1409 AD), the Nurgan Dusi was established. This area came under its jurisdiction and was also the starting point of one of the four major post routes within the Nurgan Dusi territory—the “Haixi West Land Route City Post” (Zhaozhou–Wulianghe)—thus reappearing in historical records as an important post station in the transportation network of the Ming Dynasty’s northeast.

IV. Unearthed Artifacts

A large number of artifacts have been unearthed at the Balicheng Ruins, with nearly a thousand pieces collected so far, as detailed below:

(1) Stone tools: over 30 pieces, including stone axes, stone plinths, and stone mills.

(2) Bone tools: 21 pieces, including broken spoons and deer antler implements.

(3) Bronze items: over 90 pieces, including broken ornaments, bronze Buddha statues, and copper coins such as the Dading Tongbao and Zhenglong Tongbao from the Tang, Northern Song, and Jin Dynasties.

(4) Pottery: over 150 pieces, including long bricks, decorative bricks, zoomorphic roof tiles, jars, and cups.

(5) Porcelain: over 20 pieces, including black-glazed double-handled small jars, Ding porcelain large bowls, Ding porcelain small turtles, and pig-headed three-hole whistles.

(6) Ironware: over 700 pieces, detailed as follows:

Weapons: including knives and spears.

Instruments of punishment: including three-ring leg irons.

Horse tackle: includes stirrups, bits, and more.

Handicraft tools: includes shovels, saws, axes, and more.

Farming implements: includes plowshares, hoes, and more.

Household utensils: includes kitchen knives, scissors, iron locks, and more.

There are several theories regarding when the Balicheng site was built and what it was originally called:

1. Balicheng was the Zhaozhou of the Jin Dynasty.

2. Balicheng was the Zhaozhou of the Yuan Dynasty.

3. Both the Jin and Yuan Zhaozhous were located in Balicheng.

Opinions vary and no definitive conclusion has been reached. After synthesizing various research findings and combining them with studies of unearthed artifacts, we believe the first theory—that it was the Zhaozhou of the Jin Dynasty—is the most plausible. Therefore, all content in this introduction is based on the assumption that it is the Jin Dynasty Zhaozhou.

Sizhan Town: Located in the southwest of Zhaodong, on the fertile northern bank of the Songhua River. It borders Harbin to the east and the oil city of Daqing to the west. The town earned its name “Sizhan” (Fourth Station) because it was the fourth station on the ancient Qing Dynasty post road. It has now become the economic and cultural hub of the southwestern Zhaodong area. The town covers an area of 188 square kilometers, governs 5 administrative villages, and has a total population of 30,000. It currently has 80,000 mu of arable land, 20,000 mu of natural water surfaces, and 40,000 mu of grassland. The rural economy is developing rapidly, forming a production structure that combines both dry and paddy field farming, synchronizes planting, breeding, and processing, advances industrial enterprises, and promotes green and specialty industries. As of the end of 2006, … Sizhan Town detailed information++

Further reading:

· Fifth Batch of Major National Historical and Cultural Sites