【Learn Chinese】Do you know all the World Heritage Sites in China?

Did you know that there are an unbelievable 55 listed UNESCO World Heritage Sites in China! This makes China rank top in the world along with Italy which also has 55.
World Heritage Sites in Chinese is 世界文化遗产地 (shìjiè wénhuà yíchǎndì).
UNESCO World Heritage Sites are categorised as either Cultural, Natural or both Cultural and Natural. With some truly stunning landscapes in China along with lots of historically important sites, China has a mixture of all three.
Here is a short introduction of a few of Chinas Heritage Sites. First, lets look at some cultural heritage sites.
 
The Great Wall
The first of our World Heritage Sites in China of course has to be the Great Wall.
Chinese name: 长城 chángchéng or 万里长城 wànlǐ chángchéng
Its located in northern China and was listed in 1987.
One of the “New 7 Wonders of the World” it’s no surprise that this is one of the first sites in China added to the World Heritage list.
Historians believe that the construction of the Great Wall began in 771 – 476 BC through to 221 – 206 BC when Emperor Qin Shi Huang came to power during the Qin dynasty.
The Great Wall is 21,196 km long and stretches all the way across from Hushan, Liaoning in the east to Jiayuguan Pass, Gansu in the west.
 
Forbidden City
Chinese name: 故宫 gùgōng or 紫禁城 zǐjìnchéng
Its located in Beijing and was listed in 1987.
In the heart of Beijing lies the iconic Forbidden City. Constructed from 1406 to 1420 the palace complex consists of 980 buildings!
It was the state residence of the emperors from the Ming and Qing dynasties between 1420 and 1924. The last emperor to live in the Forbidden City was Emperor Pu Yi, who was also the last emperor of China.
 
Mukden Palace (also known as Shenyang Imperial Palace)
Chinese name: 盛京宫殿 shèngjīng gōngdiàn, or 沈阳故宫 shěnyáng gùgōng
Its located in Shenyang, Liaoning and was listed in 2004.
The lesser known Mukden Palace was the former imperial palace of the Manchu-led Qing Dynasty, with the first three Qing emperors living there (1625 – 1644).
The palace was built in 1625 to resemble the Forbidden City, with some added Manchu and Tibetan styles.
In 2004 the palace was added to the world heritage sites listing as an extension to the Forbidden City.
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