Photo taken on August 23, 2023 shows the full view of the Gaotai Ancient Homes in Kashgar Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily (Reporter Cai Zengle) news: On August 23, 2023, the Xinjiang Daily “Road of Prosperity—Belt and Road Reporting Project” interview team arrived at the historical and cultural block of Gaotai Ancient Homes in Kashgar Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, to feel the charm of the folk houses of the Silk Road.

Photo taken on August 24, 2023 shows tourists visit the Gaotai Ancient Homes in Kashgar Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Photo taken on August 23, 2023 shows the Gaotai Ancient Homes in Kashgar Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Photo taken on August 24, 2023 shows tourists visit the Gaotai Ancient Homes in Kashgar Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Gaotai Ancient Homes, also known as Kuoziqiyabeixi ancient city, is located on a 30—meter high and 400—meter long and wide loess high building on the west bank of the Tuman River, covering an area of approximately 57000 square meters. This is a unique architectural complex made of raw soil that still sits in Kashgar City, which has always been a star. At the entrance sits the “Five Stars Rise in the East, benefiting China”, a Han-Dynasty brocade armband, which is a national first-class cultural relic unearthed at the Niya site. This unique design of patterns and characters attracts tourists to appreciate it and take photos.

Photo taken on August 24, 2023 shows a house named the terracotta home on the high cliff in the Gaotai Ancient Homes in Kashgar Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Photo taken on August 24, 2023 shows residents walk through the alley in the Gaotai Ancient Homes in Kashgar Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

“Kuoziqiyabeixi”means terra cotta on the high cliff. The terra cotta workshop here has a history of nearly 800 years, and there is still one that dates back 4500 years. For hundreds of years, as generations have lived and worked here, the houses have also been stacked one after another, getting higher and higher, forming unique residential architectural landscapes.

Photo taken on August 24, 2023 shows a tourist visits the Gaotai Ancient Homes in Kashgar Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Photo taken on August 24, 2023 shows residents chat over cups of tea in the Gaotai Ancient Homes in Kashgar Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

The Gaotai Ancient Homes scenic area is positioned as a high-quality cultural tourism project with Uygur residential architecture and folk customs. On the basis of overall protection and improvement, cultural tourism formats are implanted to achieve the activation of ancient buildings. In 2021, the protection and development project for the intangible cultural heritage site of Kashgar Gaotai Ancient Homes began to be implemented. The project mainly involves the renovation of the ancient sites, construction and improvement of supporting infrastructure such as public service facilities, water and electricity services, etc. In June 2023, Gaotai Ancient Homes officially opened the ancient doors with new looks, becoming a new must-visit site.

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