Through a survey that started five years ago, Chinese historians have officially measured the length of the
Great Wall of China- and it happens to be longer than previously thought. The Great Wall was built as a conglomerate defensive systems to keep the Mongols out of China, so it isn't just one long wall; levees, earthen walls, trenches and towers are also included in the length of it. The old distance was thought to be around 3,100 miles (5,000 kilometers) but now a combination of Ming-Dynasty walls and Pre-Ming Dynasty walls put the distance at an amazing 13,170 miles (21,196 kilometers) long!
The wall, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1987, is one of our members' favorite marvels in China. As
MichaelJM puts it,
"The Great Wall had been on my "must-do" list for several years and as we
paused for breath I realised that words to describe this wonder of the
world were hard to find. I do remember reading that Richard Nixon had
summarised his experience with the words "it sure is a great wall". I’m
not sure I can top that!" Check out flights to ChinaLook for hotels in ChinaSee tons of things to do in ChinaBehold our members' amazing photos of ChinaPosted by jhartmann13 (JJ Hartmann)