Do You Know The Actual Length Of The Great Wall?

Singapore
April 20, 2009 11:05pm CST
There's a popular Chinese saying that the Great Wall extends 10,000 li (5000 km). I do not know how this ancient saying came about, however, I am quite surprised that the Chinese were quite close to the actual length distance, considering the tradition and conservatism of the Chinese during that time. The Great Wall, originally built by China's first emperor Qin Shi Huang (259-210 BC) in the Warring States Period (475-221 BC), was listed as a United Nations World Heritage Site in 1987. The section built in the Ming Dynasty is the most visually striking and well-preserved portion of the world-famous fortification. Well, the actual exact distance of the China Great Wall is already out and certified to be 8,851.8 km, significantly longer than previous estimates. The latest findings are based on a two-year mapping and investigation jointly conducted by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage (S.A.C.H) and the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping (S.B.S.M). So, is anyone surprised here? Ref: http://www.asiaone.com/Travel/News/Story/A1Story20090421-136422.html
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4 responses
youless
@youless (112112)
• Guangzhou, China
2 Jul 09
I know the Great Wall is very long, but actually I don't know how exactly its length. I have been to Great Wall in the past and the guide told me if you wanted to go through the whole Great Wall on foot, it would spend you at least a year. I think this can describe how amazing the Great Wall is. I love China
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skysuccess
@skysuccess (8858)
• Singapore
2 Jul 09
youless, When I first came to China and visited the various attractions in Beijing, I was literally awed and amazed at the vastness of the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square and the Great Wall. I just cannot imagine how physically fit they must had been considering the distance between each chamber in the palace and defense positions of the Great Wall. I am sure like me, you would have seen a few of the Chinese traditional drama serials where the Emperors will summon their generals, military advisers, foreign attaches or even their concubines and empresses; and they just appear as summon without a tint of stress or huffing and puffing. Yet, when I was just strolling around and trying to cover the main attractions within the stipulated sightseeing time, I was like physically overwhelmed. I mean can you imagine the Emperor summoning you and you literally have to run from point to point, I just cannot see myself in the state to even talk without first catching my breath. So, how they do it in the past, besides when they meet the Emperor there was always that mandatory need to perform the necessary formalities and salutations. So, I just wonder just how long did the Emperor have to wait for his subjects, how long does he need to get to his resting chambers or was Justice Bao a very fit magistrate that could run around the palace without a tint of stress? I just wonder. Makes me laugh at some of the wild theories that I can think of now. Thanks again for dropping by and you have a nice day.
williamjisir
@williamjisir (22819)
• China
2 Jul 09
the Great Wall in China - The Great Wall as we see today was mostly built during the Ming Dynasty. It starts from Shanhaiguan Pass in the east to Jiayuguan Pass in the west traversing provinces of Liaoning, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Shaanxi and Gansu. This part is ready to show you an incredible diversity of scenery and ethnic people along its way, and offer you the most detailed introduction and travel tips on each section of the wall.
I did not pay much attention to the exact length of the Great Wall until I have read your discussion. I don't doubt about its length as it is a winding wall from the east to the west. In fact, we have a lot of ancient walls in China. Take the city of Ganzhou where I was born for an example. It has walls in the east, west, north of the city, but the walls in the south was pulled down due to its expanding from the south. Ganzhou is an ancient city built in the Song Dynasty and rebuilt in Ming and Qing Dynasty as well. Right now the existing walls have been repaired by our current government...
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skysuccess
@skysuccess (8858)
• Singapore
2 Jul 09
williamjisir, I think what really marveled me in this article was that when the very scholar who quoted about Great Wall, could actually come up with the actual distance (almost). It just seem so far fetch for me to even assume that he had walked the distance to know the length of this defense wall, which by the way was or rather should be a military secret. So, I am left here to ponder if this is by chance a mere guesswork or if he had the actual knowledge of this secret during that time. I suppose we will never know the answer till we meet this guy . Thanks for dropping by and you have a nice day.
scheng1
@scheng1 (24650)
• Singapore
21 Apr 09
Not surprising, even if you take out the map of China and use a ruler to measure from the beginning to the end, it's much closer to 10,000 li. Of course the Great Wall is not built on a straight line. It curved in and out like a snake, then up and down. Taken all the distance into computation, including the vertical distance, not surprised to see the 8851 km.
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wangjihong350
@wangjihong350 (887)
• China
18 Sep 09
Yes, this is not very surprising things. Ming Dynasty Great Wall in the east of Liaoning, shan, west of Jiayuguan in Gansu, from east to west via Liaoning, Hebei, Tianjin, Beijing, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Ningxia, Gansu, Qinghai, 10 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, 156 county-level units with a total length of 8851 points, 8000 meters.
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