Prince City Ruins

Prince City Ruins

The Prince City Ruins are a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Jin Dynasty Prince City Ruins in Chongli are located south of Prince City Village, Sitai Zui Township, Chongli District, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province, 20 kilometers west of Chongli County. The ruins are surrounded by mountains on all sides, with a river flowing from east to west on both the southern and northern sides, which converge west of the city after encircling it.

Archaeological surveys have confirmed that the Prince City Ruins were a rectangular-shaped city site. The unearthed relics mainly consist of various gray pottery tube and plank tiles, dragon and phoenix-shaped ridge ornaments, and other architectural components. Among the white-glazed porcelain, 15 bowls and plates with carved makara patterns have been found, bearing the inscription “Shang Shi Ju” (Imperial Kitchen Bureau), further confirming the imperial nature of the Prince City Ruins.

The site is within the area designated for the Prince City Olympic Village project at the Zhangjiakou competition zone of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. To ensure the protection of the cultural relics, Hebei Province formed a joint archaeological team that conducted comprehensive surveying, exploration, and excavation of the Prince City Ruins from May to November 2017, achieving significant findings. Analysis of the unearthed relics indicates that the Prince City Ruins date back to the mid-to-late Jin Dynasty, around the reigns of Emperor Shizong and Emperor Zhangzong. Based on historical records and the excavation results, the Prince City may be the Taihe Palace, where Emperor Zhangzong of the Jin Dynasty spent his summers, as documented in the History of Jin.

On February 26, 2018, the site was shortlisted as a finalist for the Top Ten Archaeological Discoveries of China in 2017.

In October 2019, the Prince City Ruins were included in the eighth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Prince City Village: Prince City Village…… More details about Prince City Village++

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of Cultural Relics Protection Units in Hebei Province

· Eighth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units