The Orkhon Valley Cultural Landscape stretches along the Orkhon River in Central Mongolia, about 320 kilometers west of the capital, Ulaanbaatar. It was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List because it shows the history of nomadic pastoral traditions that lasted for more than 2,000 years.

Significance

For many centuries, the Orkhon Valley was considered the center of power for the people of the steppes. The first proof of this comes from a stone pillar with Orkhon inscriptions, which was placed in the valley by Bilge Khan, an 8th-century ruler of the Göktürk Empire. About 25 miles north of the pillar, near the sacred forest-mountain Ötüken, was his Ördü, or nomadic capital. During the time when the Khitan people controlled the valley, the pillar was rewritten in three languages to record the achievements of a Khitan leader.

Mountains were seen as sacred in Tengriism, believed to be a central point connecting heaven and earth. Ötüken was especially important because it was thought that the spirits of ancestors of the khagans and beys lived there. A spiritual force called kut was believed to come from this mountain, giving the khagan the right to rule the Turkic tribes. Whoever controlled the Orkhon Valley was considered to be chosen by heaven to lead the Turks and could unite the tribes. Because of this, controlling the Orkhon Valley was extremely important for every Turkic state. Historically, every Turkic capital (Ördü) was located in this area for this exact reason.

Sites

The main monuments of the Orkhon Valley are as follows:

• The Orkhon monuments are 8th-century memorials honoring Bilge Khan and Kul Tigin. These are the most impressive monuments from the First Turkic Khaganate. Russian archaeologists found them in 1889, and Vilhelm Thomsen translated the inscriptions in 1893.
• The ruins of Ordu-Baliq, located at Kharbalgas in Mongolian, were the 8th-century capital of the Uyghur Khaganate. These ruins cover 50 square kilometers and include remains of a palace, shops, temples, and monasteries.
• The ruins of Karakorum, once the capital of the Mongol Empire.
• Erdene Zuu monastery is the first Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. It was partially destroyed by Soviet officials between 1937 and 1940.
• Tuvkhun Hermitage is a striking monastery located on a hill 2,600 meters above sea level. It was nearly completely destroyed by the Soviet Union.
• Remains of a 13th- and 14th-century Mongol palace at Doit Hill are believed to be the home of Ögedei Khan.
• The Ulaan Tsutgalan waterfall is 10 meters wide and 20 meters high. It can sometimes dry up or freeze in the winter.