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May 8, 2011

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Online vids spark ancient site fuss

VIDEO clips claiming construction work is taking place on a site allegedly containing the imperial city of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) in east China's Zhejiang Province have recently caused a stir on the Internet.

The videos show cultural relics, including pieces of ancient floor tiles and pillars, unearthed by the Luchengxizi Real Estate Company on the 2.1-hectare construction site on the bank of Hangzhou's famous West Lake.

Since appearing, the clips have sparked a call for the preservation of historic sites.

"West Lake in Hangzhou plans to apply for World Heritage status. Since the imperial city of the Southern Song Dynasty is a symbol of Hangzhou's historical culture, the destructive development will destroy the city's image," said a netizen on Sohu, one of China's major web portals.

Some local culture experts and researchers believe that the residential building work is based on the hub of the imperial city of the Southern Song Dynasty.

"The imperial city site is buried just 3 to 4 meters below ground surface," said Zhou Fuduo, a professor from Zhejiang University. "But the foundation of the construction work by the real estate company has gone more than 10 meters deep."

However, the company denied that they have planned new residential buildings on historical sites.

"We have no idea about ancient imperial city sites. When we bought the land for construction, nobody informed us that it was based on historical relics," said Wang Xiaochun, project manager for the Luchengxizi Real Estate Company.

The municipal government has suspended the construction work until they have confirmation that there is a lack of evidence to support the theory that the construction is based on top of the ancient site.



 

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