The Great Wall of China is a series of fortifications made of stone, brick, tamped earth, wood, and other materials,

generally built along an east-to-west line across the historical northern borders of China in part to protect the Chinese Empire or its prototypical states against intrusions by various nomadic groups or military incursions by various warlike peoples or forces. Several walls were being built as early as the 7th century C!"#$ these, later %oined together and made bigger and stronger, are now collectively referred to as the &reat 'all."($ Especially famous is the wall built between ))*+)*, C by the first Emperor of China, -in Shi .uang. /ittle of that wall remains. Since then, the &reat 'all has on and off been rebuilt, maintained, and enhanced! the ma%ority of the e0isting wall are from the 1ing 2ynasty. 3ther purposes of the &reat 'all have included border controls, allowing the imposition of duties on goods transported along the Silk 4oad, regulation or encouragement of trade and the control of immigration and emigration. 5urthermore, the defensive characteristics of the &reat 'all were enhanced by the construction of watch towers, troop barracks, garrison stations, signaling capabilities through the means of smoke or fire, and the fact that the path of the &reat 'all also served as a transportation corridor. The main &reat 'all line stretches from Shanhaiguan in the east, to /op /ake in the west, along an arc that roughly delineates the southern edge of 6nner 1ongolia. 7 comprehensive archaeological survey, using advanced technologies, has concluded that the 1ing walls measure 8,89* km :9,9** mi;."9$ This is made up of ,,)9< km :#,88< mi; sections of actual wall, #9< km :))# mi; of trenches and ),)#) km :=,#87 mi; of natural defensive barriers such as hills and rivers."9$ 7nother archaeological survey found that the entire wall with all of its branches measure out to be )=,=<, km :=#,=7= mi;."