HISTORIC CORRIDOR WITH WEALTH OF HERITAGE

When thinking of the famed Silk Road, an ancient intercontinental trading route, the Hexi Corridor in northwestern China also comes to mind. In comparison, another historic route, the Liaoxi Corridor in Northeast China's Liaoning province, might be lesser-known yet also has played an instrumental role in promoting cultural exchanges and cooperation from ancient history to modern days.

Spanning more than 150 kilometers and ranging from just a few kilometers to a dozen kilometers in width, the corridor, through which the renowned grassland Silk Road runs, is an important channel to facilitate economic and cultural exchanges between Northeast China and the Central Plains region, roughly referring to the areas around the Yellow River's middle and lower reaches.

As its name indicates, the corridor is situated to the west of the Liaohe River, the mother river of Liaoning. The narrow corridor area is described as an unfolded painted scroll, featuring natural beauty and cultural legacies.

The unique strategic location has enhanced the corridor's crucial position in integrating various cultures, from farming, hunting and fishing customs to grassland and maritime civilizations.

The Hongshan Culture, one of the oldest in Chinese civilization, reached the corridor some 6,500 years ago, when local people made ceramics and jade-carving works. During the Bronze Age from 3,500 to 1,000 BC, there was human activity in the corridor, archaeological discoveries show.

In 215 BC, Qinshihuang, founder of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), reached the western end of the corridor and had the Jieshi Palace built during his fourth inspection tour along his empire's northern frontier regions. The remains of the palace in today's Huludao, Liaoning province, have been recognized as a key heritage site under national protection.

In 207, Cao Cao, a prominent strategist and ruler during the Three Kingdoms (220-280), wrote his famed poem, The Sea, when he visited Jieshi after a decisive military success.

It was during the Liao (916-1125) and Jin (1115-1234) dynasties that the importance of the Liaoxi Corridor began to grow. The development of trade during the dynasties meant a need for the construction of roads. Therefore, one was built running through the Liaoxi Corridor which was previously very difficult to pass.

Since the Liao and Jin dynasties, the corridor has played an active role in promoting the integration of culture from the Central Plains region to ethnic groups in Northeast China.

During the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), at least 1.5 million people were relocated from the area within the Shanhai Pass to Northeast China via the corridor.

Five thousand years of civilization has left a great deal of cultural relics to the Liaoxi Corridor.

For instance, as stops along the corridor, today's cities of Huludao and Jinzhou have more than 50 national-level cultural heritage sites and nearly 100 provincial-level ones.

Today, there are two railway lines that run parallel with the Liaoxi Corridor: the Beijing-Harbin railway and the Qinhuangdao-Shenyang railway.