Shaanxi and Related Topics

Remains of carriages and horses in Fenghao during the Western Zhou (11th–8th cent.BC)

Xi'an

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Map including Xi'an (labeled as HSI-AN (SIAN) (walled)) (AMS, 1955)

A pavilion of the City God Temple of Xi'an.

Xi'an Hi-Tech Industries Development Zone

Xi'an (, ; ; Chinese: ), frequently spelled as Xian and also known by other names, is the capital of Shaanxi Province.

Gansu

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Landlocked province in Northwest China.

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

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

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

Gates of the provincial government complex in Lanzhou

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

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

Wetland by the Yellow River, Maqu County

Temple of the Chenghuangshen (Idol) of Lanzhou.

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

Labrang Monastery of Tibetan Buddhism in Gannan.

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.

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

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.

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.

According to the Records of the Grand Historian, after the collapse of the Qin dynasty the hegemon Xiang Yu appointed Liu Bang as prince of the small fief of Hanzhong, named after its location on the Han River (in modern southwest Shaanxi).

Sichuan

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Landlocked province in Southwest China occupying most of the Sichuan Basin and the easternmost part of the Tibetan Plateau between the Jinsha River on the west, the Daba Mountains in the north and the Yungui Plateau to the south.

Bronze head from Sanxingdui, dating from the Shu kingdom

A stone-carved gate pillar, or que, 6 m in total height, located at the tomb of Gao Yi in Ya'an, Sichuan, built during the Eastern Han dynasty (25–220 CE)

Warlords in China around 194; Liu Bei's takeover of Yi Province meant he seized the positions of Liu Biao and Zhang Lu eventually

The Leshan Giant Buddha, built during the latter half of the Tang dynasty (618–907).

Japanese bombers bombing a Chinese road in Sichuan during WW2

Shops in Jundao, a town devastated by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake

Giant pandas eating bamboo in Chengdu, Sichuan

Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts in Chengdu

Sichuan–Tibet Highway passes by Lake Kasa in Luhuo County.

The Yi are the largest ethnic minority group in Sichuan.

Extent of present-day Sichuanese language

Linpan in Chengdu Plain is a well-known landmark in Chengdu Plain, Sichuan.

View of the Temple of the Yellow Dragon (Chinese Buddhism) in Huanglong.

Statues of buddhas at Litang Monastery of the Tibetan tradition.

A pavilion of the Shangqing Temple (Taoist) in Qingchengshan, Chengdu.

Golden Temple of Mount Emei (Chinese Buddhism).

Kung Pao chicken, one of the best known dishes of Sichuan cuisine

Mixed sauce noodles ({{lang|zh-hans|杂酱面}})

Huanglong Scenic and Historic Interest Area

{{ill|Baba Temple|zh|巴巴寺}}, a Chinese Sufi mosque in Langzhong.

{{ill|Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Chengdu|es|Catedral de la Inmaculada Concepción de Chengdu}} (Roman Catholic)

St John's Cathedral, Langzhong (Anglican)

Sichuan neighbors the Qinghai to the northwest, Gansu to the north, Shaanxi to the northeast, Chongqing to the east, Guizhou to the southeast, Yunnan to the south, and the Tibet Autonomous Region to the west.

Henan

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Landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country.

Shang dynasty oracle bone script, the first form of Chinese writing

A late Eastern Han (25–220 AD) Chinese tomb mural showing lively scenes of a banquet, dance and music, acrobatics, and wrestling, from the Dahuting Han tombs, on the southern bank of the Suihe River in Xinmi, Henan

Longmen Grottoes (Mt. Longmen), Luoyang, Henan

Its neighboring provinces are Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hebei, Shandong, Anhui, and Hubei.

Shanxi

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Landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region.

Yan Xishan, warlord of Shanxi during the Republic of China.

Chinese troops marching to defend the mountain pass at Xinkou.

The Shanxi Museum located on the west bank of Fen River in downtown Taiyuan.

The Pagoda of Fogong Temple, Ying County, built in 1056.

Chenghuangshen (City God) Temple of Pingyao.

Western gate of a Temple of Heshen (River God) in Hequ, Xinzhou.

Shanxi borders Hebei to the east, Henan to the south, Shaanxi to the west and Inner Mongolia to the north.

Guanzhong

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Guanzhong (, formerly romanised as Kwanchung) region, also known as the Guanzhong Basin, Wei River Basin, or uncommonly as the Shaanzhong region, is a historical region of China corresponding to the crescentic graben basin within present-day central Shaanxi, bounded between the Qinling Mountains in the south (known as Guanzhong's "South Mountains"), and the Huanglong Mountain, Meridian Ridge and Long Mountain ranges in the north (collectively known as its "North Mountains").

Qin dynasty

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Map showing major states of Eastern Zhou

Map of the Warring States. Qin is shown in pink

Map showing the unification of Qin during 230–221 BC

Stone rubbing of a Han dynasty carved relief depicting Jing Ke's assassination attempt on Qin Shi Huang (right) holding an imperial jade disc. Jing Ke (left) is held by a court physician (background). The dagger is stuck in the pillar. A soldier (far right) rushes to save his emperor.

Dujiangyan, an irrigation project completed in 256 BC during the Warring States period of China by the State of Qin. It is located on the Min River in Sichuan, near the provincial capital of Chengdu. Although a reinforced concrete weir has replaced Li Bing's original weighted bamboo baskets, the layout of the infrastructure remains the same and is still in use today to irrigate over 5,300 square kilometers of land in the region.

Stone slab with twelve small seal characters. Qin Dynasty (221 – 207 BC). The 12 characters on this slab of floor brick affirm that it is an auspicious moment for the First Emperor to ascend the throne, as the country is united and no men will be dying along the road. Small seal scripts were standardized by the First Emperor of China after he gained control of the country, and evolved from the larger seal scripts of previous dynasties. The text on it is "海内皆臣，歲登成熟，道毋飢人".

Terracotta Army, museum of the grave of Qin Shi Huang.

An edict in bronze from the reign of the second Qin Emperor

The Qin dynasty, or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization , was the first dynasty of Imperial China, lasting from 221 to 206 BC. Named for its heartland in Qin state (modern Gansu and Shaanxi), the dynasty was founded by Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor of Qin.

Hubei

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Landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region.

Detail of an embroidered silk gauze ritual garment from a 4th-century BC, Zhou era tomb at Mashan, Jiangling County, Hubei

Liangtai River valley in Xingshan County. This is an important agricultural area since planting rice and other crops is more feasible here than on the surrounding mountain slopes

The Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River

Tea plantations on the western slopes of the Muyu Valley

Garden At Huazhong Agricultural University

University Stadium of Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan

Rural Buddhist community temple in Xianning

Hubei borders the provinces of Henan to the north, Anhui to the east, Jiangxi to the southeast, Hunan to the south, Chongqing to the west, and Shaanxi to the northwest.

Yan'an