Gaochang Ancient City

    Gaochang Ancient City located at the east of Turpan , the city-state that ruled the area from the 9th century to the 13th. The city was actually founded a few hundred years earlier than that, and gradually became known as a trading post on the Silk Road.

    Most of the ruins are gone, but enough remain to give a feeling of the true size and majesty of this Silk Road city. The city was divided into an outer city, an inner city, and a palace compound. The best-preserved structures in the ruins are two temples in the southwest and southeast corners of the outer city section.