Because we were unable to conduct large-scale field research, The Wall team devoted most of its time to a meticulous mapping of different wall lines of the MWS. To accomplish this massive project we are using existing maps and atlases, satellite imagery and remote sensing methods. This research is done by the Archaeological Research group (WP I ) produced very interesting results. Not only we were able to identify wall lines that were previously unknown and locate those which were known in their accurate geographic position, we are also able to identify a large number of structures that are associated with the wall lines and were never documented. Using old satellite imagery, from the 1960s and 1970s, we are able to map wall lines and structures that have since been destroyed or covered by modern construction. Using up-to-date, high-resolution multi-spectra and SAR images, we are also able to map features that are buried beneath sand dunes or dense vegetation. Among our more interesting findings so far is the discovery that the southern wall forms a continuous line starting in Northeast China and ending in the southwestern Gobi Dessert. This line, which is some 2,300 km long, has never been mapped and shown to be continuous. Another discovery stemming from our work on this project is the identification of two possible episodes of wall construction that make up the MWS (Fig. 3). Preliminary results of this research were published by our team : Storozum, M., et al., (2021), Mapping the Medieval Wall System of China and Mongolia: A Multi-Method Approach, Land 10(997)
https://doi.org/10.3390/land10100997(opens in new window). We are now working on the publication of another paper, which will focus on one section of the Southern Line of the MWS and will analyze it using GIS and other analytical methods.
The remote sensing work we are conducting serves as the foundations for a large-scale database that combines geographic information on the location of wall-lines and structures, references to previous publications about some of those features, historical information, and climatic and pleo-climatic data. The construction of this database is ongoing and it will continue to grow as the project develops (Fig 4.). Our final goal is to make it into an open-access database open for other researchers to use. In 2021 we sponsored a small-scale excavation by our Mongolian colleagues of a burial site that we discovered in our preliminary survey. The excavations revealed a well-preserved burial with a wooden frame, a well-preserved human skeleton, bronze and gold burial goods and ornaments, as well as well organic materials (figs. 1 and 2). The grave is dated to the Medieval period. The samples from the grave are sent for radiometric dating and analyses to identify the origins of some of the artifacts, the materials used and the production techniques.
Our Historical Research group (WP II) is systematically collecting data from Chinese sources. They now work on the History of the Liao Dynasty and focus on events and conditions related to the north and western borders of the empire. So far we collected 630 entries of different types: reports on diplomatic missions and interactions with different peoples along and beyond the borders, conflicts, commerce, climatic events and more (Fig. 5). This information is stored in the project's database and connected to our interactive database.
Tal Ulus, a doctoral student affiliated with The Wall project submitted her dissertation, which was approved by the Hebrew University. The dissertation deals with broader issues that are part of The Wall's WP II. Dr. Ulus published part of her research in: Ulus, T. and Ellenblum, R. (2021), How long and how strong must a climatic anomaly be in order to evoke a social transformation? Historical and contemporaneous case studies, Humanities and Social Sciences Communications 8, 252,
https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-021-00933-4(opens in new window).
Our Paleoclimatic Research group (WP III), is working on collecting published information from paleoclimatic research done in Mongolia and China. We have mapped all the locations where such research was done and this data is also being entered into our database. We put special emphasis on research done at inland lakes and on ancient lake shores and will conduct our own research in Lake Khukh (coordinates: 49.52800 115.57600) in Mongolia in August 2022.
In addition to the research conducted by our team, we have arranged training sessions in different methods to be tested in the field. The training was open to members of our research team, as well as students interested in using such methods (Fig. 6).
The PI of The Wall, Prof. Gideon Shelach-Lavi, has presented the project in academic and popular meetings and disseminated it to different types of audiences in Israel, Europe, North America and China.
