Construction on a Buddhism-themed park in the ancient city of Dunhuang in northwest China's Gansu Province kicked off earlier this month, local officials said Monday.
Situated in the historic site of Shazhou in west Dunhuang, the World Buddhism Culture Park will consist of a prayer square, a Buddhist relic study center, a hall for debating Buddhist scripts and a meditation center, sources with the Dunhuang Tourism Bureau said.
The park is the first of its kind in Gansu. It is expected to be completed in two years with an investment of around 3 billion yuan (477 million U.S. dollars).
The park will cover an area of around 20 hectares and will epitomize Buddhist culture, the sources said.
As an important courier station on the ancient Silk Road, Dunhuang was the first stop for Buddhist monks entering China, thus playing an important role in the spread of Buddhism. Dunhuang is widely known for the Mogao Grottoes, where a great number of Buddhist sculptures and wall paintings have been preserved.
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