Pingyao Ancient City is the world's Cultural Heritage and the National Historic Cultural City. Located at Pingyao County, Shanxi Province. Pingyao is the best-preserved ancient city of Ming (1368 - 1644) and Qing (1644 - 1911) Dynasties.
The city walls, streets, residential houses, shops, temples and other old structures are basically intact. In the third year of Daoguang (1823), the first draft bank, in the whole country, Rishengchang came into operation in the city of Pingyao. Its establishment was a milestone in the history of finance and banking in China.
The city walls of Pingyao were firstly built during the period of King Xuan (827 - 782 BC) of Zhou Dynasty. The walls enclosing the square city are 6.4 kilometres in length and about 10 metres in height, complete with battlements and watching towers, which are all built with bricks. There are six city gates and a moat outside the walls.
In the year 1997 the city was listed by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site. Pingyao also hosts an annual International Photographic Exhibition in every September, which is by far the largest in the nation.
Pingyao ancient city, with its antiquited and grand charmed stands erect on the land in Shanxi Province.
