Urabo Ancient City

The Urabo Ancient City is located by the Urabo Lake, about 10 kilometers southwest of Urumqi City, Xinjiang. The site is roughly square-shaped, with a north-south length of 550 meters and an east-west width of 450 meters, and the perimeter of the city is over 2 kilometers.

The Value of Urabo Ancient City

Tourism Value

The Urabo Ancient City is situated on the shore of Urabo Reservoir in Tianshan District, Urumqi City, with the Tianshan Mountains as its backdrop and beautiful natural scenery surrounding it. The ancient city, Urabo Reservoir, nearby orchards, and farmland complement each other, forming a unique landscape combination that offers tourists an experience of shuttling between historical culture and natural beauty.

Historical Value

Urabo Ancient City

Urabo Ancient City is a tangible witness to the ancient history of Urumqi. It is the earliest and best-preserved ancient city discovered in Urumqi today, dating back at least 1,300 years. Pottery fragments dating back to the Tang and Yuan dynasties are scattered throughout the ancient city, and a small number of Song Dynasty porcelain fragments have also been unearthed. Farmers nearby have also picked up many round copper coins with square holes from various dynasties of the Qing Dynasty in the ancient city, including those from the Qianlong to Guangxu dynasties. Through these relics from different eras, one can imagine that this ancient city has experienced a thousand years of historical vicissitudes. Tang Dynasty coins (such as "Kaiyuan Tongbao"), pottery, metalware, glassware, etc. unearthed in the ancient city and its surrounding areas confirm its historical status as an important post station on the northern route of the Silk Road.

Scientific Value

The three-layer walls, corner towers, horse-faced structures, and barbican of the Ulabo Ancient City are living textbooks for studying the city defense system of the Tang Dynasty in the Western Regions. Its rammed earth city-building technology (such as rammed earth layer thickness and material ratio) reflects the adaptability and wisdom of ancient Western Region craftsmen to the geographical environment (such as wind and sand erosion and temperature changes), and provides a physical case for architectural archaeology.

Educational Value

The ancient city is situated in the Ulabo Basin in the southern suburbs of Urumqi. Its rise and fall are closely linked to regional environmental changes. Archaeological findings indicate that the climate during the Tang Dynasty was relatively warm and humid, suitable for agricultural development, while the climate cooled after the Yuan Dynasty (Note: The city was primarily active until the Yuan Dynasty, not the Song and Yuan Dynasties as a combined period), potentially leading to oasis shrinkage and the abandonment of the city site. This human-environment interaction provides empirical evidence for studying ecological changes in the historical period of Northwest China’s arid regions, serving as a case study for environmental science and historical geography education.

Activities to do at Urabo Ancient City

Parent-child study tour: Parents and children participate in study activities together. Children can exercise their hands-on ability and thinking ability in the activities.

Photography competition: You can hold a photography competition themed on the Urabo Ancient City with your team, using lenses to capture the beautiful moments of the ancient city, including its architectural features and surrounding natural scenery.