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12201220–1260 · Kharkhorin, Orkhon valley

Karakorum, capital of the Mongol Empire

A granite turtle from Karakorum, draped in a blue khadag scarf, on the open steppe at Kharkhorin
Photo: Gyula Péter. CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Genghis Khan made a camp in the Orkhon valley his base in 1220, and his son Ögedei walled it as capital of the largest land empire in history. Envoys and merchants came from Europe to China; the friar William of Rubruck described its silver fountain tree in 1254. It declined once Kublai moved the capital to China, and in 1585 its stones went into the Erdene Zuu monastery.

Sites

  1. Site 1: Erdene Zuu MonasteryWalled monastery of 1585 built with stones from the Mongol capital.Map ↗
  2. Site 2: Karakorum stone turtle and excavated cityA granite turtle that once held a stele, beside the dig of the old city.Map ↗
  3. Site 3: Kharkhorum MuseumFinds from the excavations and a model of the 13th-century capital.Map ↗

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