China's most enduring symbol, the Great Wall, stretches across steep wooded mountains, from the China Sea to the Gobi Desert. Work on this colossal undertaking began around 221 BC, at the time of China's unification, by order of Emperor Qui Shi Huangdi. Older fortifications, erected in the 5th centum 13C, were thus linked together to defend China from V1ongolian invasions. To build this wall, which the Chinese also call "the long wall of ten thousand li" (one li equals 500 meters), hundreds of thousands of workers had to be deported and mobilized, many of them political prisoners. Several men lost their lives in the process.

During the Ming dynasty (1368-164-1), the Great Wall was repaired and strengthened. It look more than one century and over 60 million cubic meters (78.5 million cubic yards) of materials to cover the entire fortification with brick and stone. The Great Wall is six meters (2U feet) thick on average. The height varies between 6 and 18 meters (20 and 5L) feet). Some 25,000 bastions and 15,000 watchtowers mark the length of the fortification.

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