Silk Road Beacon Towers

Silk Road Beacon Towers

Guide Beacon towers were an ancient alarm system, often existing alongside the Great Wall to form a complete military defense network. However, some also functioned independently for early warning and defense, with the beacon towers in Xinjiang being a prime example. Introduction The beacon towers of Xinjiang are scattered across the Tianshan Mountains, aligned with the central and northern routes of the Silk Road, playing a crucial role in safeguarding the trade route. Currently, the Hami region retains a total of 51 beacon towers from various dynasties, making it the area in Xinjiang with the highest number and best-preserved towers. Among them, Barkol County has the most, with 29 towers, while Hami City and Yiwu County have 19 and 3 towers respectively.

The earliest beacon towers in the Hami region were built during the Tang Dynasty. Today, four Tang-era beacon towers still remain: the Laksumu Beacon Tower in Erpu, Hami; the Xiamabulake Beacon Tower in Liushiquan; the Santanghu Beacon Tower in Barkol; and the Kuotuxiaona Beacon Tower in Qianshan, Yiwu. These towers date back over 1,200 years. The majority of the currently preserved beacon towers, however, were constructed during the Qing Dynasty. The highest density of these ancient towers can be found along the line from Barkol County westward to Sa'erqiao, where one tower stands every 2–3 kilometers, totaling 13 in a continuous line. As described in a poem by Cen Shen: “The cold post station appears as a distant dot, frontier beacons gaze at one another,” forming a magnificent sight along the Silk Road.

The Sa'erqiao Beacon Tower and two beacon towers on the southern shore of Barkol Lake share a similar structure: a square base, a prism-shaped body that tapers upward, all built from rammed earth mixed with tamarisk branches and supported by round wooden frames. The Sa'erqiao Beacon Tower measures 8 meters in both length and width, and over 7 meters in height, with four layers of wooden poles about 8 centimeters in diameter running vertically through its body.

The Barkol Lake Shore Beacon Tower is located 400 meters from the highway. Its structure is tall and well-preserved, measuring over 10 meters in both length and width, and more than 9 meters in height. The rammed earth body contains round wooden beams as thick as 25 centimeters. To the southeast of the beacon tower lies the site of an old firewood yard. Under the setting sun, the string of Barkol beacon towers appears particularly ancient and orderly, recreating the former glory of the ancient Silk Road.

Hami City, Xinjiang