It is in 1220 that Chinggis Khaan decides to install his capital in Kharkhorin. What looks then only like a vast camp of ger is partially built in hard by his son, Ogödeï. Kharkhorin will then be used as administrative, commercial and cultural capital during a hundred years, until Kubilaï Khan installs his capital on the site of the future Beijing, in China.Almost nothing remains of the capital of the Mongol Empire in the 13th century. Archaeological excavations have brought to light only a tiny portion of this vast city whose walls covered a square of 4,000 meters on each side. For the moment, three of the four statues of tortoises carrying the steles of the city were found. One of them is now on display in the Ulaanbaatar museum, the second is on a hill overlooking the modern city and the third is visible outside the monastery walls. As for the astonishing fountain which enthroned in the center of Kharkhorin, and which one knows thanks to the descriptions which the travelers received at the court of Ogödeï made of it, no trace was found. If the city attracts a great number of visitors, it owes it to the monastery of Erdene Zuu, the first Buddhist place of worship built in Mongolia in the 16th century, on the ruins of the city of the 13th.Warning. On maps and in books, Kharkhorin appears under several spellings. We have chosen "Kharkhorin", the closest to the Latin transcription of the Cyrillic script, but it is also possible to find "Kharakhorum", "Karakoroum" or "Karakorum".

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