Old city of Malik Awati

Old city of Malik Awati

The old city of Malik Awati is located on the West Bank of Yulongkashi River, 25 kilometers south of Hotan city. This is another important town on the South Silk Road. Some experts believe that it is the capital site of Khotan in the Han Dynasty. It flourished in the early Western Han Dynasty and declined to the end of the Tang Dynasty. The old city is surrounded by sand mountains in the West and Kunlun Mountains in the south. In the early years, there were still remains of the double wall, which were square inside and outside. Now they have disappeared, leaving only a number of mounds of different sizes, most of which are in the southwest of the city.

There are quite a number of pottery kiln deposits and building pillars on the site. The ground is covered with red, green and gray pottery pieces, and the shape of the utensils includes pots, bowls, one ear pots and so on. One kilometer to the south of the city, the platform base is densely distributed. It is suspected that it is the old imperial palace, and some people think it is the official yamen or noble residential area. There is also a square platform nearby, about 3 meters high and about 100 meters long. It seems to be a large ancient building, and there are many red pottery pieces nearby. About 10 kilometers to the south, there is another stone pagoda, about 60 meters in circumference and about 6 meters in height, surrounded by many clay sculptures. It is said that there is a house site nearby, which has been submerged by quicksand. A clay Buddha's head was found here, decorated with gold leaves, which is exquisitely made. It is said that the site is the Qumo Temple recorded in faxianzhuan. At the northern end of the ruins of the ancient city, a large earthenware jar was found, which contained 45 kilograms of Han five baht coins. Fragments of murals, clay wall ornaments and Buddha statues were unearthed 100 meters away from daguannanci. It can be inferred that this site is also the site of a Buddhist temple. The old city has been listed as a key cultural relic protection unit in the autonomous region.

Address: West Bank of Yulongkashi River, 25 km south of Hotan City

Longitude: 80.61552491992

Latitude: 36.803077697754

Ticket information: market price: 10.0 yuan

Chinese PinYin : Mai Li Ke A Wa Ti Gu Cheng