A report on Inner Mongolia, Gansu and Xiongnu

Domain and influence of Xiongnu under Modu Chanyu around 205 BC

Persian miniature depicting Genghis Khan entering Beijing

The ruins of a Han dynasty (202 BC–220 AD) Chinese watchtower made of rammed earth at Dunhuang, Gansu province, the eastern edge of the Silk Road

Asia in 200 BC, showing the early Xiongnu state and its neighbors

The Northern Yuan at its greatest extent

Xindian culture era jar with two lug handles uncovered in Gansu, dating to around 1,000 BC

Plaque in the shape of a grazing kulan (wild ass), 2nd–1st century BC, Northwest China, Xiongnu culture.

Mongolia plateau during early 17th century

The ruins of a gate at Yumen Pass, built during the Jin dynasty (266–420)

A traveling nomad family led by a man in belted jacket and trousers, pulling a nomadic cart. Belt Buckle, Mongolia or southern Siberia, dated to 2nd-1st century BC (Xiongnu period).

Inner Mongolia and Outer Mongolia within the Qing dynasty, c. 1820

Xiongnu among other people in Asia around 1 AD.

Delegates of Inner Mongolia People's Congress shouting slogans

Gates of the provincial government complex in Lanzhou

Bronze seal of a Xiongnu chief, conferred by the Eastern Han government. Inscribed 漢匈奴/歸義親/漢長 ("The Chief of the Han Xiongnu, who have returned to righteousness and embraced the Han"). Seal, impression, and transcription in standard characters.

Belt hook depicting an animal fight, Xiongnu, 200-100 BC, bronze. Östasiatiska museet, Stockholm.

Southern and Northern Xiongnu in 200 AD, before the collapse of the Han Dynasty.

Winter in Ulanbutan Grassland, Hexigten Banner

A painting of the Buddhist Manjushri, from the Yulin Caves of Gansu, Tangut-led Western Xia dynasty (1038–1227 AD)

Location of Xiongnu and other steppe nations in 300 AD.

These rammed earth ruins of a granary in Hecang Fortress, located ~11 km (7 miles) northeast of the Western-Han-era Yumen Pass, were built during the Western Han (202 BC – 9 AD) and significantly rebuilt during the Western Jin (280–316 AD).

An embroidered rug from the Xiongnu Noin-Ula burial site. This luxury item was imported from Bactria, and is thought to represent Yuezhi figures.

A terracotta warrior from Gansu, with traces of polychrome and gold, from the Tang dynasty (618–907)

Belt plaque in the shape of a kneeling horse, 3rd-1st century BCE, gilded silver, made in North China for Xiongnu patrons.

A KFC in Hohhot, the capital, with a bilingual street sign in Chinese and Mongolian

Belt Buckle, 2nd-1st century BCE, Xiongnu. Another naturalistic belt buckle made to the Xiongnu taste, showing a mounted warrior frontally, holding a dagger and grabbing the hair of a demon who is also attacked by a dog. Also appears a nomadic cart pulled by reindeers, and another dog on top of the cart.

Xiongnu Leather Robe, Han period, Henan Provincial Museum, Zhengzhou

Temple of the White Sulde of Genghis Khan in the town of Uxin in Inner Mongolia, in the Mu Us Desert. The worship of Genghis is shared by Chinese and Mongolian folk religion.

Sign of the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center

Belt plaque with design of wrestling men, Ordos region and western part of North China, 2nd century BC, bronze - Ethnological Museum, Berlin.

Jade dragon of the Hongshan culture (4700 BC – 2900 BC) found in Ongniud, Chifeng

Belt buckle with three Ibexes, 2nd-1st century BC, Xiongnu. Chinese foundries made bronze belt plaques to the taste of the Xiongnu, who preferred designs of real animals in naturalistic settings. These plaques have typically been excavated in Xiongnu tombs of the 1st century BC.

Belt buckle with animal combat scene, 2nd-1st century BCE, made in North China for the Xiongnu. These plates were inspired by the art of the steppes, but the design was flattened and compressed within the frame.

Wetland by the Yellow River, Maqu County

Belt Buckle with nomadic-inspired zoomorphic design, manufactured in China for the Xiongnu. Mercury-gilded bronze (a Chinese technique). North China, 3rd-2nd century BC.

Honorary tomb of Wang Zhaojun (born c. 50BC) in Hohhot

2nd century BC – 2nd century AD characters of Xiongnu-Xianbei script (Mongolia and Inner Mongolia).{{sfn|Ishjamts|1996|p=166, Fig 5}}

Fresco from the Liao dynasty (907–1125) tomb at Baoshan, Ar Horqin

Temple of the Chenghuangshen (Idol) of Lanzhou.

Khitan people cooking. Fresco from the Liao dynasty (907–1125) tomb at Aohan

Nanhua Amituo Fo Temple of Chinese Buddhism seen on a hill above the roofs of the Yu Baba Gongbei, a Sufi shrine.

"Pastoralist expansion into Mongolia ca. 3000 BCE, and by the Late Bronze Age, Mongolian populations were biogeographically structured into three distinct groups, all practicing dairy pastoralism regardless of ancestry. The Xiongnu emerged from the mixing of these populations and those from surrounding regions".

Remains of the city Khara-Khoto built in 1032. Located in Ejin Khoshuu, Alxa Aimag

Labrang Monastery of Tibetan Buddhism in Gannan.

Maidari Juu temple fortress ({{zh|labels=no |c=美岱召 |p=měidài zhào}}) built by Altan Khan in 1575 near Baotou

Uniparental haplogroup assignments by group and sex-bias "z" scores of Xiongnu.

Newly built arch in front of the Maidari Juu temple fortress (1575)

Da Zhao temple (also called Ikh Zuu) built by Altan Khan in 1579

Badekar Monastery (1749) near Baotou, Inner Mongolia. Called Badgar Zuu in Mongolian

Badain Jaran temple (1868) in western Inner Mongolia

Alxa Western Monastery (Alshaa Baruun Hiid) built in 1756

The seventh-largest administrative district by area at 453700 km2, Gansu lies between the Tibetan and Loess plateaus and borders Mongolia (Govi-Altai Province), Inner Mongolia and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south and Shaanxi to the east.

- Gansu

The Xiongnu were also active in areas now part of Siberia, Inner Mongolia, Gansu and Xinjiang.

- Xiongnu

The Autonomous Region was established in 1947, incorporating the areas of the former Republic of China provinces of Suiyuan, Chahar, Rehe, Liaobei and Xing'an, along with the northern parts of Gansu and Ningxia.

- Inner Mongolia

Before the rise of the Mongols in the 13th century, what is now central and western Inner Mongolia, especially the Hetao region, alternated in control between Chinese agriculturalists in the south, and Xiongnu, Xianbei, Khitan, Jurchen, Tujue, and nomadic Mongol of the north.

- Inner Mongolia

The Yuezhi originally lived in the very western part of Gansu until they were forced to emigrate by the Xiongnu around 177 BCE.

- Gansu

3 related topics with Alpha

Han dynasty

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Imperial dynasty of China , established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu.

Thirteen direct-controlled commanderies including the capital region (Yellow) and ten semi-autonomous kingdoms of the early periods, 195 BC

Map showing the expansion of Han dynasty in the 2nd century BC

The ruins of a Han-dynasty watchtower made of rammed earth at Dunhuang, Gansu province, the eastern edge of the Silk Road.

Situation of warlords and peasant forces at the beginning of Eastern Han dynasty

Eastern Han inscriptions on a lead ingot, using barbarous Greek alphabet in the style of the Kushans, excavated in Shaanxi, 1st–2nd century AD

A late Eastern Han (25–220 CE) Chinese tomb mural showing lively scenes of a banquet (yanyin 宴飲), dance and music (wuyue 舞樂), acrobatics (baixi 百戲), and wrestling (xiangbu 相撲), from the Dahuting Tomb, on the southern bank of the Siuhe River in Zhengzhou, Henan province (just west of Xi County)

A mural from an Eastern Han tomb at Zhucun (朱村), Luoyang, Henan province; the two figures in the foreground are playing liubo, with the playing mat between them, and the liubo game board to the side of the mat.

Brick Relief with Acrobatic Performance, Han Dynasty (202 BCE – 220 CE)

Detail of a mural showing two women wearing Hanfu silk robes, from the Dahuting Tomb of the late Eastern Han Dynasty (25–220 CE), located in Zhengzhou, Henan

Han period inscribed bamboo-slips of Sun Bin's Art of War, unearthed in Yinque Mountain, Linyi, Shandong.

A fragment of the Xiping Stone Classics; these stone-carved Five Classics installed during Emperor Ling's reign along the roadside of the Imperial University (right outside Luoyang) were made at the instigation of Cai Yong (132–192 CE), who feared the Classics housed in the imperial library were being interpolated by University Academicians.

A silk banner from Mawangdui, Changsha, Hunan province. It was draped over the coffin of Lady Dai (d. 168 BCE), wife of the Marquess Li Cang (利蒼) (d. 186 BCE), chancellor for the Kingdom of Changsha.

A part of a Daoist manuscript, ink on silk, 2nd century BCE, Han Dynasty, unearthed from Mawangdui tomb 3rd, Changsha, Hunan Province.

An Eastern-Han bronze statuette of a mythical chimera (qilin), 1st century CE

A scene of historic paragons of filial piety conversing with one another, Chinese painted artwork on a lacquered basketwork box, excavated from an Eastern-Han tomb of what was the Chinese Lelang Commandery in Korean Peninsula.

A rubbing of a Han pictorial stone showing an ancestral worship hall (cítáng 祠堂)

Animalistic guardian spirits of day and night wearing Chinese robes, Han dynasty paintings on ceramic tile; Michael Loewe writes that the hybrid of man and beast in art and religious beliefs predated the Han and remained popular during the first half of Western Han and the Eastern Han.

The Gansu Flying Horse, depicted in full gallop, bronze sculpture, h 34.5 cm. Wuwei, Gansu, China, AD 25–220

A mural showing chariots and cavalry, from the Dahuting Tomb (Chinese: 打虎亭漢墓, Pinyin: Dahuting Han mu) of the late Eastern Han Dynasty (25–220 AD), located in Zhengzhou, Henan province, China

A Han-dynasty iron ji (polearm) and iron dagger

A gilded bronze oil lamp in the shape of a kneeling female servant, dated 2nd century BC, found in the tomb of Dou Wan, wife of Liu Sheng, King of Zhongshan; its sliding shutter allows for adjustments in the direction and brightness in light while it also traps smoke within the body.

An array of bronze bells, Western Han dynasty

Ornamental belt buckle, decorated with Chinese mythical creatures. Chiseled and hammered gold, late Han period.

The physical exercise chart; a painting on silk depicting the practice of Qigong Taiji; unearthed in 1973 in Hunan Province, China, from the 2nd-century BC Western Han burial site of Mawangdui, Tomb Number 3.

A pair of stone-carved que (闕) located at the temple of Mount Song in Dengfeng. (Eastern Han dynasty.)

A pair of Han period stone-carved que (闕) located at Babaoshan, Beijing.

A stone-carved pillar-gate, or que (闕), 6 m (20 ft) in total height, located at the tomb of Gao Yi in Ya'an. (Eastern Han dynasty.){{sfnp|Liu|2002|p=55}}

An Eastern-Han vaulted tomb chamber at Luoyang made of small bricks

A Han-dynasty pottery model of two men operating a winnowing machine with a crank handle and a tilt hammer used to pound grain.

A modern replica of Zhang Heng's seismometer

An early Western Han dynasty silk map found in tomb 3 of Mawangdui, depicting the Kingdom of Changsha and Kingdom of Nanyue in southern China (note: the south direction is oriented at the top).

An Eastern Han dynasty pottery boat model with a steering rudder at the stern and anchor at the bow.

The Han dynasty is known for the many conflicts it had with the Xiongnu, a nomadic steppe confederation to the dynasty's north.

During the turbulent reign of Wang Mang, China lost control over the Tarim Basin, which was conquered by the Northern Xiongnu in AD 63 and used as a base to invade the Hexi Corridor in Gansu.

The oldest known surviving piece of paper with writing on it was found in the ruins of a Han watchtower that had been abandoned in AD 110, in Inner Mongolia.

The empire during the reign of Wu Zetian, circa 700

Tang dynasty

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Imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705.

Portrait painting of Emperor Gaozu (born Li Yuan, 566–635), the first Tang Emperor.

Empress Wu (Wu Zetian), the sole officially recognized empress regnant of China in more than two millennia. She first ruled through her husband and sons for almost three decades, then became emperor herself and ruled in her own right for another fifteen years.

The Leshan Giant Buddha, 71 m high; begun in 713, completed in 803

Nanchan Temple (Wutai), built during the late 8th century

A late Tang mural commemorating the victory of General Zhang Yichao over the Tibetans in 848 AD, from Mogao cave 156

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang wearing the robes and hat of a scholar

Tang tomb figure of an official dressed in Hanfu, with a tall hat, wide-sleeved belted outer garment, and rectangular "kerchief" in front. A white inner gown hangs over his square shoes. He holds a tablet to his chest, a report to his superiors.

Civil service exam candidates gather around the wall where results had been posted. Artwork by Qiu Ying.

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang giving audience to Zhang Guo, by Ren Renfa (1254–1327)

Emperor Taizong (r. 626–649) receives Gar Tongtsen Yülsung, ambassador of the Tibetan Empire, at his court; later copy of an original painted in 641 by Yan Liben (600–673)

The Chinese Tang dynasty during its greatest extension, controlling large parts of Central Asia.

Chinese officer of the Guard of Honour. Tomb of Princess Chang-le (长乐公主墓), Zhao Mausoleum, Shaanxi province. Tang Zhenguan year 17, i.e. 644 CE

A 10th-century mural painting in the Mogao Caves at Dunhuang showing monastic architecture from Mount Wutai, Tang dynasty; Japanese architecture of this period was influenced by Tang Chinese architecture

Tomb figure of mounted warrior similar to the one unearthed from the tomb of Crown Prince Li Chongrun

Tomb guardian (wushi yong), early 8th century

A bas relief of a soldier and the emperor's horse, Autumn Dew, with elaborate saddle and stirrups, designed by Yan Liben, from the tomb of Emperor Taizong c. 650

Illustration of Byzantine embassy to Tang Taizong 643 CE

Tang dynasty Kai Yuan Tong Bao (開元通寳) coin, first minted in 621 in Chang'an, a model for the Japanese 8th-century Wadōkaichin

Tomb figure of a horse with a carefully sculpted saddle, decorated with leather straps and ornamental fastenings featuring eight-petalled flowers and apricot leaves.

A contract from the Tang dynasty that records the purchase of a 15-year-old slave for six bolts of plain silk and five Chinese coins. Found in the Astana Cemetery in Turfan.

Tomb Figure of a Sogdian merchant, 7th-century

A mural depicting a corner tower, most likely one of Chang'an, from the tomb of Prince Yide (d. 701) at the Qianling Mausoleum, dated 706

The bronze Jingyun Bell cast 711, height 247 cm high, weight 6,500 kg, now in the Xi'an Bell Tower

A Tang dynasty era copy of the preface to the Lantingji Xu poems composed at the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, originally attributed to Wang Xizhi (303–361 AD) of the Jin dynasty

A poem by Li Bai (701–762 AD), the only surviving example of Li Bai's calligraphy, housed in the Palace Museum in Beijing.

Calligraphy of Emperor Taizong on a Tang stele

A Tang dynasty sculpture of a Bodhisattva

An 8th-century silk wall scroll from Dunhuang, showing the paradise of Amitabha

A timber hall built in 857, located at the Buddhist Foguang Temple of Mount Wutai, Shanxi

A Tang sancai-glazed carved relief showing horseback riders playing polo

A late Tang or early Five Dynasties era silk painting on a banner depicting Guanyin and a female attendant in silk robes, from the Dunhuang caves, now in the British Museum

Palace ladies in a garden from a mural of Prince Li Xian's tomb in the Qianling Mausoleum, where Wu Zetian was also buried in 706

Tang era gilt-gold bowl with lotus and animal motifs

A Tang sancai-glazed lobed dish with incised decorations, 8th century

Tomb figure of a lady attendant, 7th- to 8th-century; during the Tang era, female hosts prepared feasts, tea parties, and played drinking games with their guests.

A rounded "offering plate" with design in "three colors" (sancai) glaze, 8th-century

A square bronze mirror with a phoenix motif of gold and silver inlaid with lacquer, 8th-century

The Diamond Sutra, printed in 868, is the world's first widely printed book to include a specific date of printing.

The Dunhuang map, a star map showing the North Polar region. c. 700. The whole set of star maps contains over 1,300 stars.

"Great Tang" (Dà Táng) in seal characters.

A Tang Dynasty sancai statuette of Sogdian musicians riding on a Bactrian camel, 723 AD, Xi'an.

However, the Tang did manage to restore at least indirect control over former Tang territories as far west as the Hexi Corridor and Dunhuang in Gansu.

In the year 630, Tang armies captured areas of the Ordos Desert, modern-day Inner Mongolia province, and southern Mongolia from the Turks.

While the Turks were settled in the Ordos region (former territory of the Xiongnu), the Tang government took on the military policy of dominating the central steppe.

The Ming dynasty Great Wall at Jinshanling

Great Wall of China

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Series of fortifications that were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against various nomadic groups from the Eurasian Steppe.

Huayi tu, a 1136 map of China with the Great Wall depicted on the northern edge of the country

The Great Wall of the Qin stretches from Lintao to Liaodong

The Great Wall of the Han is the longest of all walls, from Mamitu near Yumenguan to Liaodong

The extent of the Ming Empire and its walls

Part of the Great Wall of China (April 1853, X, p. 41)

A more rural portion of the Great Wall that stretches through the mountains, here seen in slight disrepair

Identical satellite images of a section of the Great Wall in northern Shanxi, running diagonally from lower left to upper right and not to be confused with the more prominent river running from upper left to lower right. In the image on the right, the Great Wall has been outlined in red. The region pictured is 12 x.

Great Wall of Han dynasty near Yumenguan.

thumb|Remains of Beacon tower near Yumenguan, 2011

"The First Mound" – at Jiayu Pass, the western terminus of the Ming wall

The Juyongguan area of the Great Wall accepts numerous tourists each day

Environmental protection sign near Great Wall, 2011

Ming Great Wall at Simatai, overlooking the gorge

Mutianyu Great Wall. This is atop the wall on a section that has not been restored

The Old Dragon Head, the Great Wall where it meets the sea in the vicinity of Shanhai Pass

To position the empire against the Xiongnu people from the north, however, he ordered the building of new walls to connect the remaining fortifications along the empire's northern frontier.

Dynasties founded by non-Han ethnic groups also built their border walls: the Xianbei-ruled Northern Wei, the Khitan-ruled Liao, Jurchen-led Jin and the Tangut-established Western Xia, who ruled vast territories over Northern China throughout centuries, all constructed defensive walls but those were located much to the north of the other Great Walls as we know it, within China's autonomous region of Inner Mongolia and in modern-day Mongolia itself.

Han fortifications starts from Yumen Pass and Yang Pass, southwest of Dunhuang, in Gansu province.