A view of a renovated section of the Great Wall in Suizhong County, Northeast China's Liaoning Province. Known as Xiaohekou Great Wall, original construction started on the section in 1381 during the Ming Dynasty. Many have questioned the renovation as it appears the broken walls were simply filled and leveled with mortar. (Photo/IC)
China's cultural heritage watchdog confirmed on Tuesday that a small amount of cement was used in the repairs of a 635-year-old Great Wall section, thepaper.cn reports.
The State Administration of Cultural Heritage began investigating after reports surfaced last week showing a section of the Great Wall, located on the border between Liaoning and Hebei provinces, coated with cement which essentially turned it into a concrete path.
The section of the Great Wall, once dubbed by many as "most beautiful wild stretch of the Great Wall", was built in 1381 and stretches for 8.9 kilometers.
The repair project was blasted by netizens as the "ugliest" reparation and it was carried out from 2013 to 2014, with local authorities describing it as an emergency response to the severely damaged state of the section. They insisted that "every step" of the repairs was conducted according to the relevant laws and regulations.
An expert involved in the investigation Fu Qingyuan who previously expressed no concerns with the engineering techniques, changed his tune, and said adding an additional layer on the top surface of the Great Wall section was not reported to the State Administration of Cultural Heritage and the coating is a breach of the regulations.
The chief of the investigation group Lu Qiong told the press on Tuesday that 780 meters of the Great Wall was paved and the project did use a small amount of cement.
Local authorities are required to check for any problems in the project again, report back to the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, and to severely deal with any responsible institutions and persons.
A total of 15 provinces along the Great Wall have been told to check all Great Wall protection projects in a bid to avoid further damage.
Random inspections will be conducted to ensure the Great Wall is well preserved.
