China

• China has a number of ancient monuments. The country has the Great Wall, the world's largest military structure, in addition to the Temple of Heaven, a series of imperial structures constructed in the 15th century and located in Beijing. The capital is also the site of the Forbidden City, an imperial palace during the reign of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Another world-renowned monument in China is the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor, which contains thousands of terracotta statues.
  
  

Japan

• Japan has a rich array of monuments in the forms of shrines and temples. For example, the wooden structures in the Horyu-ji area date from the 7th and early 8th century and house Buddhist shrines. In addition, the city of Kyoto, which was the cultural center of Japan for more than 1,000 years, contains a host of wooden architectural masterpieces and ancient gardens. The city of Nara was also an ancient capital and contains historic monuments such as Shinto shrines.
  
  

India

• India's historic monuments testify to its Buddhist and Hindu legacies. For example the Great Living Chola Temples in Southern India contain three temples exemplifying the accomplishments of the Chola Empire in bronze casting and sculpture. In addition, the Sun Temple of Konarak, which was built in the 13th century, represents through its elaborate stone motifs the sun god Surya's chariot. India also is the site of other sacred Buddhist sites such as the Ellora and Ajanta Caves.
  
  

Other Ancient Asian Monuments

• Some of Asia's other celebrated ancient monuments include Angkor Wat, which contains the archeological remains of the Khmer Empire's different capital cities. On the coast of Vietnam stands the My Son Sanctuary, which is a series of temples testifying to the masterly Hindu architecture of the Champa kingdom, which reigned from the 4th to the 13th century. Indonesia is home to two ancient temple sites, the Borobudur Temple and the Prambanan Temple compounds.