The picture book "Old Photos of Cultural Relics in Shaanxi Province" has been published by Sanqin Press in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province.
Compiled by Zhao Liguang of the Xi'an Stela Forest Museum in Shaanxi, the album has chosen 492 out of nearly 1,000 old photos taken in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and the early Republic of China (1912-49).
The photos record ancient city walls, ruins of palaces, ancient strategic passes, imperial mausoleums, ancient Buddhist and Taoist temples and dolmens in Shaanxi.
Archaeologists think the album is very valuable because many of the relics depicted in it have disappeared. For example, most of the city walls in the 24 counties depicted in the album have been demolished.
Located in the center of one of the birthplaces of Chinese civilization, Xi'an was the capital of 13 feudal dynasties throughout history, leaving behind 35,750 sites of historical importance.
(China Daily November 20, 2002)
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