Genghis Khan Mausoleum

The Genghis Khan Mausoleum is located in about 15km southeast of Atengxilian town of Ikinholo Banner in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The mausoleum is 115 kilometers (62 miles) north of Yulin, and 55 kilometers (30 miles) south of Dongsheng. It was built from 1954 to 1956 by the Chinese government in the traditional Mongol style. The Mausoleum is not the real burial place of the Khan, which has never been discovered; it is a cenotaph, where the coffin contains no body, but only headdresses and accessories.

 

By the time of his death in 1227, Genghis Khan had established an empire stretching across Asia from Korea in the east to Hungary in the west. Today the mausoleum is a holy site to many Mongolians.

 

The mausoleum covers an area of 5 hectares and comprises 3 yurt shaped palaces, with blue and white walls topped with domes of glazed yellow tiles. The halls are all connected and the central hall houses a 5 meter (52ft) statue of Khan against the backdrop of a map of his 13th century empire.

 

Genghis Khan’s real tomb is still historically a mystery. People have already regarded the Genghis Khan Mausoleum that evolved from the eight white rooms as Genghis Khan’s real mausoleum, with which to commemorate his achievements.

There is some dispute as to whether the relics housed here have any real connection with Genghis Khan but this is still an interesting site as it serves as a pilgrimage place for Mongolians and those interested in Khan.