Qiemo Town
Encyclopedia
The oasis
town of Qiemo or Cherchen is the capital of Qiemo County
, of the Bayingolin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang
, China is on the Qiemo River
, at the foot of the Qilian
Mountains, on the old Southern Silk Route. Anciently the town, and the kingdom it controlled, were frequently known as Shanshan
.
to Khotan
via Jingjue or Cadota – the so-called “Niya site” north of modern Minfeng
(also referred to as 'Niya', a route almost directly north to Korla
, and another route which went south through the mountains, and around the southern shore of Qinghai Lake
, and then on via Xining
to eastern China. Qiemo is 315 km east of Niya/Minfeng
, 605 km east of Hotan, and 351 km west of Charklik/Ruoqiang Town along Highway 315.
at least with 2,400 year old mummies at the Zaghunluq site less than five km southwest of the city center.
During the Former Han Dynasty (123 BC to AD 23), it was described in the Hanshu, chapter 96A as a having "230 households, 1610 individuals with 320 persons able to bear arms . . . . There are grapes and various types of fruit." Interestingly, although the town is described in documents from the 1st century BC to the 9th century AD, the ancient site has not yet been discovered in spite of four major expeditions searching for it.
This area has a truly ancient human history, based on the 3,500-year-old cemetery along the ancient 'Jade Road' that traded with the earliest Chinese dynasties and the similarly dated Bronze Age rock carvings south of town along another ancient trade route to what is now Tibet and a forgotten back door to central China.
More than a thousand years later, the area was ruled as the kingdom of Calmadana during the earliest heyday of the Silk Road. Its fortunes have since ebbed and flowed, mainly with the popularity of the southern trade route. The Chinese Buddhist monk, Faxian
, left a brief account of the country after his visit c. 399 AD, recorded that there were probably more than 4,000 monks in the country, all Hinayana
. Song Yun
passed through about 519, who recorded that the country had just been defeated by the Tuyuhun
(Tibetan: Azha). It was sometimes abandoned, as when Buddhist monk Xuanzang
passed through in the year 644, and when Marco Polo
came by in 1273.
Oasis
In geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...
town of Qiemo or Cherchen is the capital of Qiemo County
Qiemo County
The Qiemo County , also known as Cherchen or Qarqan in the Uighur language, is a county under the administration of the Bayin'gholin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Its area is and, according to the 2002 census, it has a...
, of the Bayingolin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
, China is on the Qiemo River
Qiemo River
The Qiemo River , also called the Cherchen or Qarqan River, runs across the Tarim Basin in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. It feeds into the Lop Nor salty marshes.- See also :* Qiemo County* Qiemo Town...
, at the foot of the Qilian
Qilian
The Qilian Mountains is a northern outlier of the Kunlun Mountains, forming the border between Qinghai and the Gansu provinces of northern China.-Geography:...
Mountains, on the old Southern Silk Route. Anciently the town, and the kingdom it controlled, were frequently known as Shanshan
Shanshan
Shanshan is the Chinese name for a kingdom that existed roughly from 200 BCE-1000 CE at the north-eastern end of the Taklamakan Desert including the great, but now mostly dry, salt lake known as Lop Nur....
.
Geography
Qiemo was strategically located at the junction of the main route from DunhuangDunhuang
Dunhuang is a city in northwestern Gansu province, Western China. It was a major stop on the ancient Silk Road. It was also known at times as Shāzhōu , or 'City of Sands', a name still used today...
to Khotan
Khotan
Hotan , or Hetian , also spelled Khotan, is the seat of the Hotan Prefecture in Xinjiang, China. It was previously known in Chinese as 于窴/於窴 and to 19th-century European explorers as Ilchi....
via Jingjue or Cadota – the so-called “Niya site” north of modern Minfeng
Minfeng
Niya is a town in Minfeng County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China.It is the county seat of Minfeng County, and therefore is commonly referred to as Minfeng, and is labeled so on less detailed maps.-Geography:...
(also referred to as 'Niya', a route almost directly north to Korla
Korla
-Economy:Korla has long been the biggest centre in the region after Karashahr itself, having abundant water and extensive farmlands, as well as controlling the main routes to the south and west of Karashahr. Due to the discovery of oil in the Taklamakan Desert, Korla is now both more populous and...
, and another route which went south through the mountains, and around the southern shore of Qinghai Lake
Qinghai Lake
Qinghai Lake , is a saline lake situated in the province of Qinghai, and is the largest lake in China. The names Qinghai and Kokonor both mean "Blue/Teal Sea/Lake" in Chinese and Mongolian. It is located about west of the provincial capital of Xining at 3,205 m above sea level in a depression...
, and then on via Xining
Xining
Xining is the capital of Qinghai province, People's Republic of China, and the largest city on the Tibetan Plateau. It has 2,208,708 inhabitants at the 2010 census whom 1,198,304 live in the built up area made of 4 urban districts.-History:...
to eastern China. Qiemo is 315 km east of Niya/Minfeng
Minfeng
Niya is a town in Minfeng County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China.It is the county seat of Minfeng County, and therefore is commonly referred to as Minfeng, and is labeled so on less detailed maps.-Geography:...
, 605 km east of Hotan, and 351 km west of Charklik/Ruoqiang Town along Highway 315.
History
Qiemo has a very ancient history dating back to the Bronze AgeBronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
at least with 2,400 year old mummies at the Zaghunluq site less than five km southwest of the city center.
During the Former Han Dynasty (123 BC to AD 23), it was described in the Hanshu, chapter 96A as a having "230 households, 1610 individuals with 320 persons able to bear arms . . . . There are grapes and various types of fruit." Interestingly, although the town is described in documents from the 1st century BC to the 9th century AD, the ancient site has not yet been discovered in spite of four major expeditions searching for it.
This area has a truly ancient human history, based on the 3,500-year-old cemetery along the ancient 'Jade Road' that traded with the earliest Chinese dynasties and the similarly dated Bronze Age rock carvings south of town along another ancient trade route to what is now Tibet and a forgotten back door to central China.
More than a thousand years later, the area was ruled as the kingdom of Calmadana during the earliest heyday of the Silk Road. Its fortunes have since ebbed and flowed, mainly with the popularity of the southern trade route. The Chinese Buddhist monk, Faxian
Faxian
Faxian was a Chinese Buddhist monk who traveled to India, Sri Lanka and Kapilavastu in today's Nepal between 399 and 412 to acquire Buddhist scriptures...
, left a brief account of the country after his visit c. 399 AD, recorded that there were probably more than 4,000 monks in the country, all Hinayana
Hinayana
Hīnayāna is a Sanskrit and Pāli term literally meaning: the "Inferior Vehicle", "Deficient Vehicle", the "Abandoned Vehicle", or the "Defective Vehicle". The term appeared around the 1st or 2nd century....
. Song Yun
Song Yun
Song Yun was a Chinese Buddhist monk who was sent by the devout Buddhist Empress Hu 胡 of the Northern Wei Dynasty with some companions including the monk Hui Zheng, Fa Li and Zheng Fouze, to northwestern India to search for Buddhist texts...
passed through about 519, who recorded that the country had just been defeated by the Tuyuhun
Tuyuhun
The Tuyuhun Kingdom was a powerful kingdom established by nomadic tribes related to the Xianbei in the Qilian Mountains and upper Yellow River valley....
(Tibetan: Azha). It was sometimes abandoned, as when Buddhist monk Xuanzang
Xuanzang
Xuanzang was a famous Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator who described the interaction between China and India in the early Tang period...
passed through in the year 644, and when Marco Polo
Marco Polo
Marco Polo was a Venetian merchant traveler from the Venetian Republic whose travels are recorded in Il Milione, a book which did much to introduce Europeans to Central Asia and China. He learned about trading whilst his father and uncle, Niccolò and Maffeo, travelled through Asia and apparently...
came by in 1273.
Transportation
- Qiemo is well-serviced with buses from the stainless-steel covered bus station just south of the city centre, heading both west to Hotan, east to Charklik / Ruoqiang and north to Korla.
- Qiemo AirportQiemo AirportQiemo Airport is an airport serving Qiemo Town and the rest of Qiemo County, in the Bayin'gholin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China.- Facilities :...
has flights, usually twice a week, provided by China Southern AirlinesChina Southern AirlinesChina Southern Airlines is an airline headquartered in Baiyun District, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China. It is the world's sixth-largest airline measured by passengers carried, and Asia's largest airline in terms of both fleet size and passengers carried...
to and from UrumqiÜrümqiÜrümqi , formerly Tihwa , is the capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, in the northwest of the country....
via KorlaKorla-Economy:Korla has long been the biggest centre in the region after Karashahr itself, having abundant water and extensive farmlands, as well as controlling the main routes to the south and west of Karashahr. Due to the discovery of oil in the Taklamakan Desert, Korla is now both more populous and...
.
External links
- Tourism Guide to Cherchen / Qiemo A Tourism Guide to Cherchen / Qiemo, Xinjiang, China. Centralasiatraveler.com. Retrieved on 2011-03-12.