The Wonder of the Great Wall

The Great Wall of China is perhaps the most famous building, ancient or modern, in the world today.

In fact, there is not only one Great Wall, but many, built during different dynasties over a more than 2,000-year-long period in the North of China.

The "newest" of these Walls is the fortification constructed during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and it is the best preserved.

The complex system of border defences which comprise the Ming Dynasty Great Wall is thought to measure approximately 6,700-km in length. It is perhaps the most supreme wonder of the world.

Snaking across the mountaintops, its viewers are in awe at so much bulky building material having been used in such inaccessible places. Such a panorama across the Great Wall records the severity of the conflict between China's farming civilization and their nomadic northern neighbours.

Recognizing the outstanding cultural value of these complex and ancient border defences that can be found across 17 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities of northern China, "The Great Wall of China" was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage at the 11th session of the organization's meeting in September 1987.

The Ming Dynasty Great Wall is the world's most labour-intensive, time-and material consuming construction project in human history. This also means it is the world's largest single cultural relic -- and the world's largest single cultural relics protection challenge, in a rapidly changing part of the world.