Ancient Yaju site

The ancient cliff dwelling is located in a quiet valley in the northwest of Yanqing in the suburb of Beijing. It is a cave dug on the steep cliff by an ancient ancestor without historical records. There are 117 caves. This is the largest cliff dwelling site found in China. The site has been rated as a scenic spot in Beijing, a key cultural relic protection unit in Beijing and a national youth education base.

Ancient Yaju site

Beijing cultural relics protection unit. Located at the foot of Haituo mountain, Zhangshanying Township, Yanqing County, northwest of Beijing. Donggou ancient cliff dwelling site is the largest in scale. It is located in a long and narrow valley of gravel granite. There are all kinds of cliff dwelling caves on the cliff of the valley. The cave group is divided into two parts: front ditch and back ditch, both of which are East-West strike. Yaju caves are carved with stone chambers, as many as several. There are more than 100 kinds of cliff dwelling caves. From a distance, it looks like a huge grotto village. The site was excavated by Xi people in Liao and Five Dynasties, which is of great value to the study of the history, culture, production and living conditions of the northern minorities.

Brief introduction of the site

Guyaju site is located in a quiet Canyon in the north of dongmenying village, Zhangshanying Township, 15km west of Yanqing County, with Songshan Nature Reserve in the East and Guanting Reservoir in the south. There are 117 caves, which were dug on the steep cliff by a group of ancient ancestors without historical records. Archaeologists have proved that the ancient Yaju cave was excavated in the late Tang Dynasty. It is a tribe inhabited by Xi people, one of the ethnic minorities in northern China. Donggou ancient cliff dwells in the cave group. It is built on a high mountain with an altitude of more than 800 meters. It consumes 10000 liang of silver and has been chiseled for 31 years. It is the largest ancient cliff dwelling site found so far in North China. It covers an area of 5 square kilometers, with a cliff cutting area of 24000 square meters. The site has been rated as a scenic spot in Beijing, a key cultural relic protection unit in Beijing and a national youth education base.

The cave group of Donggou is divided into three parts: front, middle and back. It is cut on the gravel granite wall and adjacent to the entrance. In the shape of a natural village, there are three slopes in the south, North and east of Qiangou, with 91 caves in total, and one in the east of Hougou. There are 26 pavilions with 117 caves. These caves, which hang on the steep cliff of nearly 100000 square meters, have single rooms, two suites and three suites; some are connected from top to bottom, some are connected from left to right, just like a floor room; others have many doors in one cave, extending in all directions. There are stone lampstand, stone stove, stone trough and stone Kang in the cave, with reasonable layout; the traces of smoke exhaust duct, air hole, hinge and door frame can be seen clearly. The most ingenious one is the palace Cave (King Xi's residence) at the middle mountain ridge, which can be connected by the upper and lower layers. In the spacious hall, six carved stone pillars support the top of the cave. In the middle is a large stone case. On both sides of the hall, there are two small rooms, which are called "guantangzi" by the local people.

Some caves on the steep cliff of nearly 100000 square meters are connected from top to bottom, while others are connected from left to right. There are stone lampstands, stone stoves and stone Kang chiseled in the caves. The layout is reasonable. The traces of smoke exhaust ducts, air holes, door hinges and door frames are vivid.

The Xi nationality originally lived in the northeast of China. In the middle and late Tang Dynasty, Liao emerged in the northeast. The Xi nationality could not bear the oppression and slavery of Liao and moved one after another. The cave group of ancient cliff dwellings in Donggou was excavated by the leader of Xi nationality. Xi people lived here for more than 30 years, and still lived in Liao, Jin and Yuan Dynasties.

The discovery of the cave group of ancient cliff dwelling in Donggou provides important material materials for the study of national culture in ancient northern China

As for the excavation age of ancient Yaju, it is believed that it was Yuan Dynasty, Wei Dynasty, Tang Dynasty and Liao Dynasty. What is the purpose and use? Garrison? Should war be avoided? Where are the ethnic minorities? According to inaccurate textual research, this is a Yanzhai inhabited by Xi nationality between Tang Dynasty and Liao Dynasty

There are 48 caves on the east wall of Qiangou, 43 caves on the north and south walls, and 26 caves on the east wall of Hougou. There are 117 caves and more than 350 bays in the front, middle and back parts. The caves are scattered adjacent to each other in the shape of a natural village. Generally, the caves are three bedrooms with one light and two darkness, as well as single and double bedrooms, with a height of about 2 meters, a depth of 1-6 meters, and an area of about 3-20 square meters. In addition, there are stables and so on. There are Kang platform, lampstand, stove, closet and stone trough in the cave. The design of Kang platform is similar to today's hot Kang, with curved flue leading to the outside. The door frame, hinge and air hole are finely chiseled with edges and corners, and the chisel marks are faintly visible.

Under the ridge between the front and back ditches, there is a large palace like cave, which has two floors, East and West. The lower floor is the main hall. There are stone cases in the hall, and there are several bedrooms on both sides, one of which can lead to the upper floor. It's very similar to the meeting hall or conference hall. The local people call it "guantangzi", "Jinluan hall" and "Guya Hotel". There are six carved stone pillars in the hall, which are used to support the upper layer. The upper floor is a living room, similar in shape to the lower floor. According to legend, there is an original plaque in front of the cave, which reads "Qingshui County Yamen". The newly renovated "Guya Hotel" is located at the top of the towering Haituo mountain and the bottom of the grand Guanting lake.

Underground location

Beijing cultural relics protection unit. Located at the foot of Haituo mountain, Zhangshanying Township, Yanqing County, northwest of Beijing. Donggou ancient cliff dwelling site is the largest in scale. It is located in a long and narrow valley of gravel granite. There are all kinds of cliff dwelling caves on the cliff of the valley. The cave group is divided into two parts: front ditch and back ditch, both of which are East-West strike. Yaju caves are carved with stone chambers, as many as several. There are more than 100 kinds of cliff dwelling caves. From a distance, it looks like a huge grotto village. The site was excavated by Xi people in Liao and Five Dynasties, which is of great value to the study of the history, culture, production and living conditions of the northern minorities.

Historical development

The ancient cliff dwelling is a cultural relic of an eternal mystery. It is located in a quiet valley in the Northwest Mountain Area of Yanqing in the suburb of Beijing. It is a rock dwelling cave dug on the steep cliff by an ancient ancestor who has no historical records. There are 117 caves. This is the largest cliff dwelling site ever found in China. The site has been rated as a scenic spot in Beijing, a key cultural relic protection unit in Beijing and a youth education base in China.

Archaeologists have verified that the ancient Yaju cave was excavated in the late Tang Dynasty, and it is a tribe inhabited by Xi people, one of the ethnic minorities in northern China. Donggou ancient cliff dwells in the cave group. It is built on a high mountain with an altitude of more than 800 meters and consumes tens of millions of taels of silver. After 31 years of chiseling, it is the largest ancient cliff dwelling site in North China. It covers an area of 5 square kilometers, with a cliff cutting area of 24000 square meters. There are 48 caves on the east wall of Qiangou, 43 caves on the north and south walls, and 26 caves on the east wall of Hougou. There are 117 caves and more than 350 bays in the front, middle and back parts. The caves are scattered adjacent to each other in the shape of a natural village. Generally, the caves are three bedrooms with one light and two darkness, as well as single and double bedrooms, with a height of about 2 meters, a depth of 1-6 meters, and an area of about 3-20 square meters. In addition, there are stables and so on. There are Kang platform, lampstand, stove, closet and stone trough in the cave. The design of Kang platform is similar to today's hot Kang, with curved flue leading to the outside. The door frame, hinge and air hole are finely chiseled with edges and corners, and the chisel marks are faintly visible.

Under the ridge between the front and back ditches, there is a large palace like cave, which has two floors, East and West. The lower floor is the main hall. There are stone cases in the hall, and there are several bedrooms on both sides, one of which can lead to the upper floor. It's very similar to the meeting hall or conference hall. The local people call it "guantangzi", "Jinluan hall" and "Guya Hotel". There are six carved stone pillars in the hall, which are used to support the upper layer. The upper floor is a living room, similar in shape to the lower floor. According to legend, there is an original plaque in front of the cave, which reads "Qingshui County Yamen". The newly renovated "Guya Hotel" is located at the top of the towering Haituo mountain and the bottom of the grand Guanting lake.

The Xi nationality originally lived in Northeast China. In the middle and late Tang Dynasty, Liao emerged in Northeast China. The Xi nationality could not bear the oppression and enslavement of Liao and moved one after another. The cave group of ancient cliff dwellings in Donggou was excavated by the leader of Xi nationality. Xi people lived here for more than 30 years, and still lived in Liao, Jin and Yuan Dynasties.

Site pattern

The ancient cliff dwelling site, with 117 caves, is the largest cliff dwelling site found in China. According to the location of the stone chamber, Yaju village can be divided into the former and the latter two areas. There are 91 stone chambers on the south, North and east slopes of Qiangou, 26 stone chambers on the east slope of Hougou, and 117 stone chambers in total. The openings of these stone chambers are adjacent to each other, and the positions are scattered orderly. The stone chambers are generally 1.8 meters high, rectangular or square, and most of them are three apartments with one light and two dark. All the stone chambers are distributed into floor layers, with stone pedals, stone terraces and trestles connected between the layers.

The steep cliffs on three sides of the canyon are full of large stone chambers carved by hand, either rectangular or square. The large ones are more than 20 square meters, and the small ones are only 3-4 square meters. Either single rooms or 2-3 rooms are connected, or suites are parallel, or upper and lower floors. There are typical "three bedrooms". Among them, there is a stone cave with two floors above and below, and it is equipped with ear chambers and porch columns. It may be the place where the cave owners meet or worship. It is grand and magnificent, and the mountain people commonly call it "guantangzi". In all caves, doors, windows, Kang, stove, manger, wall kitchen, flue and so on are all available, and round is round, square is square.

Walking into the ancient cliff residence, we can see that there are many human beings living in the ancient cliff residence