The Ancient City of Dunhuang

The Ancient City of Dunhuang, also known as Dunhuang Movie and Television City, a Shanzhou Ancient City Modeled on the Style of the Song Dynasty, is located in the Gobi desert on the southern side of Yangguan Highway of Dunhuan City, 25 kilometers away from the city center. It was built in 1987 for the Sino Japanese co production of the grand historical story Dunhuan. Taking the Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival as the blueprint, its elaborate design and construction are modeled on the ancient Chinese architectural style, with a construction area of 12,700 square meters.

The architecture of the Ancient City of Dunhuang is of rich western styles. The city has three gates: East Gate, West Gate and South Gate. The gate tower stands high. In the city there are five main streets: Gaochang, Dunhuan, Ganzhou, Xinging and Bianliang. On both sides of the streets there stand Buddhist temples, pawn shops, warehouses, taverns and residential houses, etc.. The ancient city represents the rich local features as well as the friendly exchanges in the Northern Song Dynasty between the Central Plains and Dunhuang, Dunhuang and the western regions. It is known as the Architectural Art Museum of North China. Here more than twenty domestic and foreign movies and television plays have been shot, including The Canonization of the Gods, The sword of conquest, The Sword of Conquest, New Dragon Inn, Dunhuang Nights, Desert Prince and Mirage. It has now become the main scenic spot in Dunhuang.