Sights in Kharkhorin (Karakorum)
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Erdene Zuu Khiid
Founded in 1586 by Altai Khaan, Erdene Zuu (Hundred Treasures) was the first Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. It had between 60 and 100 temples, about 300 gers inside the walls and, at its peak, up to 1000 monks in residence.
The monastery went through periods of neglect and prosperity until finally the Stalinist purges of 1937 put it completely out of business. All but three of the temples in Erdene Zuu were destroyed and an unknown number of monks were either killed or shipped off to Siberia and never heard from again.
However, a surprising number of statues, tsam masks and thangkas were saved from the monastery at the time of the purges - possibly with the help of a fe…
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Tumen Amgalan
The centrepiece of the city was the Tumen Amgalan, or Palace of Worldly Peace, in the southwest corner of the city. This 2500-sq-metre complex, built in 1235, was the palace of Ögedei Khaan. The two-storey palace had a vast reception hall for receiving ambassadors, and its 64 pillars resembled the nave of a church. The walls were painted, the green-tiled floor had underfloor heating, and the Chinese-style roof was covered in green and red tiles.
Whenever he was at court, the khaan sat on a panther skin atop a great throne, to which stairs ascended from one side and descended from the other.
A team of German archaeologists recently uncovered the foundations of the palace, …
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Stone Turtles
Outside the monastery walls are two stone turtles. Four of these sculptures once marked the boundaries of ancient Karakorum, acting as protectors of the city (turtles are considered symbols of eternity). The turtles originally had an inscribed stone stele mounted vertically on their back.
One is easy to find: just walk out of the northern gate of the monastery and follow the path northwest for about 300m. Often, an impromptu souvenir market is set up next to one stone turtle. You'll need a guide or directions to find the other one, which is on the hill south of the monastery, about 600m past the phallic rock.
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Ancient Karakorum
Just beyond Turtle Rock, stretching for about a kilometre south and east, is the site of ancient Karakorum. The foundations of Karakorum's buildings are all underground and little has been excavated, so you need lots of imagination when contemplating the grandness of it all. The plain was littered with bricks, ruined walls and pillars until the mid-16th century when everything was picked up and used to build the walls and temples of nearby Erdene Zuu.
Next to Turtle Rock you can see an area of raised earth surrounded by a wire fence. This was the alleged site of Ögedei Khaan's palace.
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Phallic Rock
Near Kharkhorin, a two-foot long stone penis attracts steady streams of curiosity-seekers. The 'phallic rock', which points erotically to something interestingly called a 'vaginal slope', is hidden up a small valley, about 2km southeast of Erdene Zuu Khiid. A giant penis, painted onto a sign by the road, points you in the right direction. Legend has it that the rock was placed here in an attempt to stop frisky monks, filled with lust by the shapely slope, from fraternising with the local women.
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Square of Happiness and Prosperity
In the northeast of the monastery are the base stones of a gigantic ger (now called the Square of Happiness and Prosperity), set up in 1639 to commemorate Zanabazar's birthday. The ger was reported to be 15m high and 45m in diameter, with 35 concertina-style walls, and could seat 300 during the annual assemblies of the local khaans.
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Erdene Zuu Khiid Gravestones
Apart from the main temples, there are several other interesting things to see at Erdene Zuu Khiid. The gravestones of Abtai Khaan (1554-88) and his grandson Tüshet Khaan Gombodorj (the father of Zanabazar) stand in front of the Dalai Lama Süm and are inscribed in Mongol, Tibetan and Arabic scripts.
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Great Imperial Map Monument
This large monument is on a hill overlooking Kharkhorin to the southwest. The three sides honour various empires established on the Orkhon Gol, including the Hunnu period (300-200 BC), the Turkic period (AD 600-800) and the Mongol period (13th century). There are superb panoramic views from here.
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