Ancient Southern City of Lop Nur (Haitou Ancient City)

Ancient Southern City of Lop Nur (Haitou Ancient City)

The Ancient Southern City of Lop Nur (Haitou Ancient City) is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Haitou Ancient City is located 48.3 kilometers southwest of the Loulan Ancient City. It was the second-largest city in the Lop Nur region during the Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties periods, after Loulan. The northern and southern walls are 107 meters long, the eastern and western walls are about 190 meters long, and the total area is approximately 20,000 square meters.

The area around Haitou Ancient City is another concentration of ruins in the Lop Nur region. About 3 kilometers to its northwest lies the LL Ancient City, and about 4.8 kilometers further northwest is the LM residential site. The cultural relics authorities refer to Haitou Ancient City as the Ancient Southern City of Lop Nur. In 1914, when Aurel Stein explored Lop Nur, he named this site the LK Ruins.

Haitou Ancient City was first discovered in 1907 by Tokhta Akhun, a Uyghur guide of Aurel Stein. In 1910, Japanese explorer Tachibana Zuicho obtained the Li Bo Documents here while exploring Lop Nur. At that time, he mistakenly believed this city to be Loulan. In the same year, Chinese scholar Wang Guowei, while studying the Li Bo Documents, discovered that both items were marked with the words “Hai Tou.” Japanese scholar Mori Shunsaku also confirmed, based on photos provided by Tachibana Zuicho of the location where the Li Bo Documents were found, that this was not Loulan but rather the LK Ruins. Since then, the Ancient Southern City of Lop Nur, or LK Ruins, has been referred to as “Haitou Ancient City.” After the 30s of the 4th century AD, Loulan City was abandoned, and the seat of the Western Regions Protectorate was moved to Haitou Ancient City.

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units