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中|CHINANETZ

Historic city · Gansu

Wuwei

武威 (Wǔwēi)

Liangzhou, city of the bronze galloping horse

Wuwei is a prefecture-level city at the eastern end of the Hexi Corridor, the historic Liangzhou that was the largest city of the corridor for much of its history. The Eastern Han bronze galloping horse, symbol of Chinese tourism, was found in a tomb here, and in 1247 the city hosted the meeting between the Tibetan lama Sakya Pandita and the Mongol prince Köden.

ProvinceGansu

Key facts

Province
Gansu
Administrative level
Prefecture-level city
Area
about 32,300 km²[1]
Resident population
1.46 million(as of 2020 census)[2]
Galloping horse found
1969, Leitai tomb

Overview

The Han named Wuwei commandery for the “martial might” of its victory over the Xiongnu. In the centuries of division after the Han, Liangzhou was the capital of several regional states — the Former Liang, Later Liang and Northern Liang among them — which kept Chinese scholarship alive and sponsored Buddhism; the translator Kumarajiva lived here for some seventeen years.

Today Wuwei is a farming oasis between the Qilian Mountains and the Tengger and Badain Jaran deserts. Its northern county, Minqin, is a long-standing focus of efforts to halt desertification.

Names and nicknames

  • 凉州 (Liángzhōu)

    The historical name, used in Tang poetry and still for the central district.

  • 姑臧 (Gūzāng)

    The ancient name of the city, capital of the Former Liang and other states of the fourth and fifth centuries.

  • 天马故乡 (tiānmǎ gùxiāng)

    “home of the heavenly horse”

    After the bronze galloping horse found at Leitai.

History

Liangzhou was the political centre of the Hexi Corridor from the Han to the Tang, a city of horses, grapes and music whose “Liangzhou tunes” inspired a genre of Tang frontier poetry. It was later ruled by the Tibetans, the Uyghurs and the Western Xia, whose bilingual stele of 1094, found here, helped scholars decipher the Tangut script. In 1247 Sakya Pandita met Köden at Liangzhou, an encounter regarded as the start of Mongol–Tibetan political ties.

  1. 2nd century BCE

    Wuwei commandery

    Founded as one of the four Han commanderies of the Hexi Corridor.

  2. Eastern Han

    Leitai tomb

    A general's tomb furnished with a bronze procession of horses and chariots, including the galloping horse found in 1969.

  3. 4th–5th century

    Capital of the Liang states

    Guzang was the seat of the Former, Later and Northern Liang; Kumarajiva was held here from 385 to 401.

  4. 1094

    Western Xia stele

    A stele with parallel Tangut and Chinese texts recorded the restoration of a pagoda; it became a key to reading Tangut.

  5. 1247

    Liangzhou meeting

    Sakya Pandita and Prince Köden met at Liangzhou; the Baita Temple marks the site.

Landmarks

  1. Historic site

    Leitai Han Tomb

    雷台汉墓 (Léitái Hàn Mù)

    The brick tomb where the galloping horse was found, with a replica of the bronze procession.

  2. Historic site

    Wuwei Confucian Temple

    武威文庙 (Wǔwēi Wénmiào)

    One of the largest Confucian temples of the north-west, with the Western Xia Museum and its bilingual stele nearby.

  3. Temple or shrine

    Kumarajiva Temple

    罗什寺 (Luóshí Sì)

    Temple with a brick pagoda said to hold the tongue relic of the translator.

  4. Temple or shrine

    Baita Temple

    白塔寺 (Báitǎ Sì)

    Site of the 1247 meeting and of Sakya Pandita's burial stupa, with a museum.

Neighbourhoods

  • Liangzhou

    凉州区 (Liángzhōu Qū)

    The central district around the drum tower and the Confucian temple.

  • Tianzhu

    天祝 (Tiānzhù)

    Tibetan autonomous county in the Qilian Mountains south of the city.

Food

  • Santaoche

    三套车 (sāntàochē) — “three-horse cart”

    A set meal of hand-pulled noodles, braised pork and sweet tea with dates.

  • Liangzhou noodles

    凉州行面 (Liángzhōu xíngmiàn)

    Thick noodles pulled from rested dough, served with meat sauce.

Culture

Liangzhou's past as a centre of music and Buddhist translation is central to its identity, along with the galloping horse, whose image appears all over the city. Liangzhou's wines recall the grapes of Tang poetry; vineyards have been planted again in the oasis.

葡萄美酒夜光杯，欲饮琵琶马上催。醉卧沙场君莫笑，古来征战几人回？

Pútáo měijiǔ yèguāng bēi, yù yǐn pípá mǎ shàng cuī. Zuì wò shāchǎng jūn mò xiào, gǔ lái zhēngzhàn jǐ rén huí?

“Fine grape wine in luminous cups; as we are about to drink, the pipa on horseback urges us on. If I lie drunk on the battlefield, do not laugh — since ancient times, how many have come back from war?”

— Wang Han, “Liangzhou Song” (凉州词), Tang dynasty

Getting around

  • Wuwei East is on the Lanzhou–Xinjiang high-speed line; Wuwei station serves conventional trains.
  • The main sites are in or near the central district; Tiantishan Grottoes and Tianzhu lie to the south.

Day trips

  • Tiantishan Grottoes

    天梯山石窟 (Tiāntī Shān Shíkū)

    Among the earliest Buddhist caves in China, begun under the Northern Liang, with a large seated Buddha above a reservoir.

  • Minqin

    民勤 (Mínqín)

    Oasis county between two deserts, known for its shelter belts and desert-control work.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

  1. Wuwei Municipal People's Government — Wuwei Municipal People's Government (retrieved 27 September 2026)
  2. Seventh National Population Census communiqués — National Bureau of Statistics of China (retrieved 27 September 2026)
  3. Wuwei — Encyclopaedia Britannica (retrieved 27 September 2026)

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