Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ettes of imposing town walls, elegant courtyard architecture, ancient towers
poking into the north China sky, and an entire brood of creaking temples and
old buildings.
History
Already a thriving merchant town during the Ming dynasty, Pingyao's ascend-
ancy came during the Qing era when merchants created the country's first
banks and cheques to facilitate the transfer of vast amounts of silver from one
place to another.
The city escaped the shocking reshaping much loved by communist town
planners, and almost 4000 Ming- and Qing-dynasty residences remain within
the city walls.
