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A view of city wall at Chaoyangmen in Xincheng district of Xi'an and the layout of the office building inside it. [Photo/cnwest.com]

Controversial offices built inside ancient wall

An ancient wall in Xi'an was hollowed out in order to build a four-storey office by the Management Committee of Xi'an's City Wall, raising controversy.

Responding to criticisms, the Information Office of the Xi'an government said on Monday that the wall in question was built in 1993 and was not a cultural relic, and that the space within it is reserved for building offices and transformer substations.

Permission for the construction was received from the local cultural heritage administration and city planning department, the Information Office said.

Xi'an's ancient city wall, one of the largest city walls in China, was built in the Ming Dynasty between 1370 and 1378. It was listed by the State Council as one of China's Key Preservation sites of Cultural Relics in 1961.

A view of the offices inside the antient wall. [Photo/cnwest.com]

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