The Iron Gate Pass connects the Yanqi Basin and the

Tarim Basin The Tarim Basin is an endorheic basin in Northwest China occupying an area of about and one of the largest basins in Northwest China.Chen, Yaning, et al. "Regional climate change and its effects on river runoff in the Tarim Basin, China." Hydr ...

in central

Xinjiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...

, China. The pass follows the gorge of the

kaidu River The Kaidu River (; Uyghur: قايدۇ دەرياسى ;), also known under its ancient name Chaidu-gol, is a river in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China and an important source of water for the region. The Kaidu River is responsible f ...

. The main settlements linked by the pass are the town of Yanqi in the

Yanqi Hui Autonomous County Yanqi Hui Autonomous County (Uyghur: Qarasheher, Karashahr) is an autonomous county in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and is under the administration of the Bayin'gholin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture. It has an area of . According to the 20 ...

to the north and the city of

Korla Korla,The official spelling according to also known as Kurla, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency or from Mandarin Chinese as Ku'erle or Kuerle, is the second largest city in Xinjiang. It is a county-level city and the seat of ...

in the Bayin'gholin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture in the south. The first town immediately to the north of the pass is Tashidian. The Iron Gate Pass was of historical strategical significance because it formed a vulnerable bottle-neck on the Silk Road. A military checkpoint was established at the pass during the

Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...

. At present, the pass is no longer part of the road infrastructure of the region and is preserved as a scenic and historical area. The modern road ( G218) from Yanqi to Korla passes through the mountains to the east of the gorge. The gorge of the Iron Gate Pass is the setting of a legendary love story.Iron Gate Pass
/ref>
/ref> According to the legend, a princess of the Kingdom of Yanqi called Tzouhla had fallen in love with a poor herdsman named Tayir. The royal court opposed the relationship and a minister Karehan convinced the king to have Tayir killed. As the princess tried to rescue her lover from the king's soldiers, they both fell to their death in the gorge. A

tumulus A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones bu ...

is said to mark the place where the two lovers were buried opposite to the gate to the pass.

References

{{Mountain passes of China Mountain passes of China Mountain passes of Xinjiang Sites along the Silk Road

See also

References