Great Wallies of China: Workmen cause ‘irreversible damage’ to an ancient monument by smashing a ‘great chasm’ through it to create a shortcut
- Two construction workers would have created an opening for their excavator to pass through
- They caused significant damage to the 32nd Wall and have since been arrested
Workers have caused ‘irreversible damage’ to the Great Wall of China after trying to create a shortcut by digging a ‘big hole’.
Construction workers in Shanxi Province used an excavator to dig a hole in the 32nd wall of the ancient monument, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.
They would have dug a ‘big hole’ in an existing hole in the wall for their machines to pass through.
A 38-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman were reportedly working near the damaged area in Yang Qianhe township.
On August 24, police were called to the area. Two unidentified people have since been arrested and police officers are investigating the incident, state broadcaster CCTV said.
The photo shows the ‘big hole’ created by two construction workers who dug a hole for their excavator to pass through
The workers damaged the 32nd wall of the ancient monument (pictured), which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987
It reported that the suspects had caused “irreparable damage” to the Ming Great Wall, a protected part of the structure that was built and rebuilt from about 220 B.C. to the Ming dynasty in the 17th century.
The local police said in a statement: “About 4:20 pm on August 24, the Command Center of the County Public Security Bureau received an alert stating that a hole had been dug in the Thirty-two Great Wall in Yang Qianhe Township.
‘After receiving the alarm, the detective team quickly arrived on the scene. After inspecting the tracks on site, the police initially determined that the ancient Great Wall had been damaged as a result of excavations by large machines.
Police then patrolled the line and found a backhoe and a man and woman in neighboring counties and Lingeer County.
“After questioning on the spot, it turned out that the old Great Wall had been destroyed by the two people. Police have called on the two people to return to the county public security office for further investigation.”
The Great Wall of China was first built in the Qin Dynasty (259 BC to 210 BC) by China’s first emperor, Qinshihuang. It is the world’s largest man-made structure with a length of about 21,170 kilometers. Marked is where the wall was damaged
The suspects caused ‘irreversible damage’ to the Ming Great Wall of China after creating the ‘great chasm’ (pictured)
The famous Great Wall of China consists of several fortifications, which were built piecemeal between the last millennia BC and the 17th century AD.
Similar to the London Underground, various ‘lines’ were built over the centuries that ran next to and against each other to form a gigantic network.
Construction work began during the Qin Dynasty (259 BC to 210 BC) as part of a line of defense against enemies to the north.
Large parts were built during the Ming Dynasty (1368 to 1644) to help defend against the Mongol tribes.
The sections built during this period are what most tourists visit today. On average, the most popular area receives about 20,000 tourists per day.
The Great Wall also formed a frontier boundary that allowed Chinese authorities to levy duties on goods transported along the Silk Road trade route.