Xanadu, the ruins of the first capital of Kublai Khan's empire, in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, has been listed by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as a World Heritage site.
The move was supported unanimously at the 36th World Heritage Committee meeting in Russia's St. Petersburg on June 29. Xanadu is the 30th world heritage site in China. It is also the first site in Inner Mongolia. The city, known as Xanadu in The Travels of Marco Polo, was built during China's Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). The layout of the city demonstrates the merger of Mongolian and Han cultures. (CNTV.cn June 29, 2012) |