10 recent Chinese additions to the World Heritage List

A giant sculpture of Kubla Khan stands at the Site of Xanadu. British Samuel Taylor Coleridge once referred the Site of Xanadu as a wondrous place in his poem Kubla Khan. [Photo/IC]

2. Site of Xanadu

The Site of Xanadu encompasses the remains of Kublai Khan’s legendary capital city, designed by the Mongol ruler’s Chinese advisor Liu Bingdong in 1256.

Over a surface area of 25,000 ha, the site was a unique attempt to assimilate the nomadic Mongolian and Han Chinese cultures. The site was planned according to traditional Chinese feng shui in relation to the nearby mountains and river.

It features the remains of the city, including temples, palaces, tombs, nomadic encampments and the Tiefan’gang Canal, along with other waterworks.

It was added into the list on June 29, 2012.