Ruins of Niutou City

　　Niutou City is situated to the north of Guzhan Village, Guzhan Township, Lintan County. The city walls are built in the shape of an inverted trapezoid — lower in the front, higher in the back, wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, resembling the head of an ox, hence the name. The city was constructed against the mountain, utilizing the terrain for strategic advantage, making it a highly defensible site. The entire city is divided into a front section and a rear section, stretching 1,155 meters in length, with the widest point being 245 meters and the narrowest 45 meters, and a total perimeter of over 1,300 meters. Most of the city walls have now collapsed, leaving only remnants and beacon towers, though a section in the southeast remains relatively well-preserved.

　　At the end of the Yongjia era of the Western Jin Dynasty (313 AD), the Tuyuhun (a branch of the Xianbei Murong clan, one of the northern ethnic minorities) occupied areas of Taozhou, including today’s Jiucheng and Guzhan. In the 15th year of the Taihe era (491 AD) during the reign of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Tuyuhun built Taoyang City, Niutou City, and temples in Taozhou, marking the beginning of the spread of Buddhist culture in the region.

　　A poet once wrote: “Now sitting atop the ruins of the city wall, I can faintly see the Tuyuhun from the north, emerging from the flames of the Western Jin war, surging into southern Gansu, building earthen fortresses, drinking blood, and singing songs.”

　　Niutou City is a provincial-level cultural heritage protection unit and holds significant historical value for the study of the development and warfare history of ancient Taozhou.