Mor Buddhist Temple Ruins & Hanoi Ancient City
莫尔佛寺遗址与汗诺依古城
The best-preserved Tang-era Buddhist stupa ruins in the desert northeast of Kashgar, where a square stupa and a round bell-shaped stupa stand side by side on the wasteland, among the westernmost Buddhist sites in Xinjiang.
The Mor Buddhist Temple ruins lie on a gravel terrace in the desert about 30 kilometers northeast of Kashgar city, in Bosheke-ranmu Township. They are the remains of a Buddhist monastery of the Shule Kingdom from the Tang period (roughly the 3rd to 10th centuries) and are a national key cultural heritage site. The core of the ruins consists of two adobe stupas. One is a large square bell-shaped stupa about 12 meters high, and the other is a reliquary stupa on a square base. In Uyghur, 'Mor' means 'chimney', describing the shape of the stupa. The stupas stand isolated on the desolate Gobi, and they are especially striking at sunset. About 6 kilometers to the south are the ruins of Hanoi Ancient City, a city site from the Kara-Khanid period, where only broken walls and earthen mounds remain, and a guide with local knowledge is needed to find it. There are no facilities at the site. Admission and opening conditions should be checked on site. It is best to hire a car and bring plenty of drinking water.
Opening hours
Daytime (per on-site management)
Nearby sights
- Mausoleum of Sultan Satuq Bughra Khan
- Abakh Khoja Tomb (Xiangfei Garden)
- Kashgar Grand Bazaar
- Kashgar Prefecture Museum
- Century-old Pottery Workshops
- Gaotai Ancient Residences
- Pantuo City & Ban Chao Memorial Park
- Han Bazaar Food Street & Night Market