Beijing, July 8 (Xinhua) Xanadu, the city built by Mongol emperor Kublai Khan and mentioned by Italian traveller Marco Polo, has been unearthed by Chinese archaeologists who have sketched its layout.
“The most exciting findings are the layout of the moat in front of the Mingde Gate to the royal capital in the three-month excavation,” said Yang Xingyu, a senior archaeologist.

Xanadu, also spelled Shangdu, was built in 1256 under the command of Kublai Khan, the first emperor of Yuan or Mongol Dynasty (1206-1368). It became the summer capital of Mongol emperors of China after the Yuan Dynasty moved its capital to what is now Beijing.

Yang said that the excavation programme is expected to take three years to unearth structures in Shangdu.

Marco Polo (1254-1324) once described the prosperity of Shangdu in his book, arising the interest of many archaeologists and historians.

The regional administration of Inner Mongolia has submitted an application for World Cultural Heritage status for the site with the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco).