Study: China's Great Wall is longer than
thought
The Great Wall of China is even greater than once thought.
A two-year government mapping study has uncovered new sections
of the ancient Chinese monument that total about 180 miles (290
kilometers), according to a report posted on the State Bureau of
Surveying and Mapping Web site.
Using mapping technologies such as infrared range finders and
GPS devices, experts discovered portions of the wall _ concealed by
hills, trenches and rivers _ that stretch from Hu Mountain in
northern Liaoning province to Jiayu Pass in western Gansu province,
the official China Daily reported Monday.
The newly mapped parts of the wall were built during the Ming
Dynasy (1368-1644) to protect against northern invaders and were
submerged over time by sandstorms that moved across the arid
region, the study said.
The additional parts mean the Great Wall _ which Chinese
emperors began constructing 2,000 years ago to keep out Monguls and
invaders _ spans about 3,900 miles (6,300 kilometers) through the
northern part of the country.
The joint project, conducted by the State Administration of
Cultural Heritage and State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping, will
continue for another year in order to map sections of the wall
built during the Qin (221 B.C.-206 B.C.) and Han (206 B.C.-9 A.D.)
Dynasties, the report said.
Recent studies by Chinese archaeologists have shown that
sections of the wall in Gansu are being reduced to "mounds of dirt"
by sandstorms and may disappear entirely in 20 years. They blamed
destructive farming methods in the 1950s that desertified large
areas of northern China. In addition, portions of the wall in Gansu
were made of packed earth, which proved less resilient that brick
and stone used in much of the wall's construction.
China in recent years has begun restoring parts of the wall as
well as trying to rein in commercial development on and around
it.
The wall's modern sections around the Chinese capital date from
the Ming Dynasty, including those restored since the Communist
Party took power in 1949, and several areas _ including the most
popular, Badaling, just north of Beijing _ draw hundreds of
thousands of visitors each year.
Tourist encroachment also has been a problem in recent years,
with state media saying that near Badaling almost every brick on a
popular section of the wall has been carved with people's names or
other graffiti.