The Ruined Stone City


The Ruins of Stone City is located on a hilltop about 3,000 meters above sea level about 40 kilometers to the southwest of the county seat of Ruoqiang. The hill rises steeply, with sheer precipice and overhanging rocks about 100 meters deep around. A footpath 500 meters long or so leads to the city on the hilltop. The city was built with stones, shaped like a “T”, and around 300 meters in circumference. There is a gate in the northwestern city walls on the west are about 2 meters thick and still rise to about 3 meters high on the ground. There are some ruined houses built with bricks and stones inside the city. Situated at a gorge leading from the Altun Mountains on the south, the city occupies an important geographical position.