English: John Thomson: A DOUBLE line of wall rises from the village of Kew-yung-kwan, and, running up the mountain side, unites with another wall that sweeps across the crest of the hill. This point is considered one of the most important in the Nankow Pass, and it is the spot where, it is said, Genghis Khan was successfully routed in his attempt to enter the north of China. There is at this village a very remarkable marble arch (see No. 56), erected apparently during the Yuen dynasty, and said to have oricrinally carried a pagoda on its top. This pagoda was taken down shortly after the Ming E
English: John Thomson: A DOUBLE line of wall rises from the village of Kew-yung-kwan, and, running up the mountain side, unites with another wall that sweeps across the crest of the hill. This point is considered one of the most important in the Nankow Pass, and it is the spot where, it is said, Genghis Khan was successfully routed in his attempt to enter the north of China. There is at this village a very remarkable marble arch (see No. 56), erected apparently during the Yuen dynasty, and said to have oricrinally carried a pagoda on its top. This pagoda was taken down shortly after the Ming Emperors got possession of the throne, and this was done to propitiate the Mongols, who were deterred by superstitious fears from passing beneath the shrine. The arch is remarkable on account of its octagonal form, and also for the strange figures from the Indian mythologies with which its surface is adorned. These ornaments very closely resemble many of the sculptures found on the ruined temples of Cambodia. I was at once struck with the similarity when I first saw the arch, and having since compared its entablatures with the photographs which I took in Cambodia in 1866, I find my original impressions confirmed. It will be observed that the key-stone carries a mythological figure flanked with two others wearing crowns of a seven-headed snake, while the bodies of the snake flow into the ornamentation on either side. The date of the erection of this arch would be about 1345 , at any rate, that is the date of an old inscription on its inner surface. Mr. Williamson mentions a fine arch and marble bridge near Kal-gan, ornamented with marble figures of monkeys, elephants, &c. These structures may prove to belong to the same period, and may point to some connection with Cambodia beyond what we can trace in the style of their ornaments. 1 have obtained further evidence regarding the knowledge possessed by the Chinese of the ancient Cambodians which throws light on the greate 21 ANC
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Photo credit: © History and Art Collection / Alamy / Afripics
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