Qin'an County 秦安县

History

The county has long been called the "village of Fuxi and home of Nüwa" (羲里娲乡). Under the Song there were three forts here: Qin (秦寨), Jichuan (鸡川寨) and Longcheng (陇城寨). In 1157 the Jin dynasty turned them into three counties and added the character an (安) to the old fort name Qin, which is how the name Qin'an began. In 1270 the Yuan merged Jichuan and Longcheng into Qin'an, which then belonged to Qinzhou (秦州).

Three sites in the county are national key protected sites: Dadiwan, Xingguo Temple (兴国寺) and the Dacheng Hall of the Confucian temple (文庙大成殿). Sixty-eight Neolithic sites, of the Yangshao (仰韶), Majiayao (马家窑), Qijia (齐家) and other cultures, have been found.

What to see

The Dadiwan Site lies 45 km north-east of the county town, east of Shaodian village (邵店村) in Wuying (五营), on terraces along the south bank of the Qingshui River (清水河), a tributary of the Hulu River (葫芦河). Found in 1958 and dug from 1978 to 1984, it covers five cultural phases dated to about 7,800 to 4,800 years ago. Finds include painted pottery of the earliest phase, a large hall numbered F901 with a floor of a concrete-like material, and a floor painting on lime plaster. It became a national key protected site in January 1988.

Longcheng (陇城) town, 45 km east of the county town, holds the Jieting battlefield site (街亭古战场遗址), where Ma Su (马谡) lost Jieting in 228 during Zhuge Liang's (诸葛亮) first campaign to Qishan (祁山). A stele pavilion was built there in 1997. Longcheng also has a Nüwa Temple (女娲庙). Before the Han it stood on Longquan Hill (龙泉山), 2.5 km north of the town, and it was later moved several times; the present building was rebuilt by local people in 1989 on its old site inside the south gate.

Food and local products

Qin'an is known as a home of honey peaches. Qin'an honey peaches (秦安蜜桃) and Qin'an Sichuan pepper (秦安花椒) are both Chinese geographical-indication products.

Highlights

• Dadiwan Site 大地湾遗址: Neolithic site with five cultural phases from about 7,800 to 4,800 years ago; national key protected site since 1988.
• Jieting battlefield site 街亭古战场遗址: In Longcheng town, where Ma Su lost Jieting in 228; county-level protected site since 2005.
• Nüwa Temple 女娲庙: Rebuilt in 1989 inside the south gate of Longcheng.
• Qin'an honey peach 秦安蜜桃: Chinese geographical-indication product.