The Genghis Khan Equestrian Statue (Чингис хааны морьт хөшөө) is 40 meters (130 ft) high and depicts Genghis Khan on a horse. It is the tallest equestrian statue in the world [1]. The complex is located about 54 km southeast of Ulaanbaatar (Улаанбаатар) on the southern terrace of the Tuul River (Туул голын), the place is called Tsonjin (Цонжин), which is in Central Province. And one could now consider why not a location closer to Ulaanbaatar was chosen for the equestrian monument. Well, the reason for this lies in the legend that Emperor Genghis Khan had found his golden riding crop there. A golden riding crop can also be admired on the statue. The statue, which stands silver shining in the landscape, also includes a whole complex and below the huge steel statue in the basement there is a small historical-ethnographic museum; I found it very worth visiting. Interestingly, it wasn't overcrowded, although there was a lot of activity upstairs due to the proximity of the Naadam festival, so one can assume that there would be more peace and quiet at other times.
The 40 meters already mentioned are divided into 30 meters for the statue itself and a 10 meter high structure on which this statue stands. “The monument was built with a total of 250 tons of quality steel.” This basic structure is surrounded by 36 columns. You can take an elevator up inside or use the stairs to get to a viewing platform from which you have a great view of the landscape.
Some tourists believe that it is the burial site of Genghis Khan [2], but this location is unknown. It is believed to be located on the Mongol sacred mountain of Burkhan Khaldun (Бурхан Халдун уул) in the Khentii Mountains (Хэнтийн нуруу). Despite archaeological search expeditions, the site has not been discovered. Genghis Khan went to this holy mountain to pray to the sky god before he began the campaign to unite the Mongols and other peoples of the steppe. After the beginning of the Mongol Empire, this area became known as Ikh Khorig or the Great Tabu. Only members of the Mongolian imperial family, also called the golden family, were allowed into this area. An area of around 240 square kilometers had been cordoned off. Intrusion by unauthorized persons was punishable by death (what else?). A few years ago (2015), Dr Albert Yu-Min Lin from the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology at the University of California, San Diego, started a project to find possible locations using images from space. Around 55 archaeologically interesting sites have been found where Genghis Khan's final resting place could potentially be located. I'm usually all for archaeological research, but I have my concerns in this case. So much is known about the Great Khan that the scientific value is probably less than the sensation of the find. I think, leave leave the remains of Genghis Khan alone.
The Mausoleum of Genghis Khan (成吉思汗陵) is located in Inner Mongolia, the People's Republic of China. Inner Mongolia is a somewhat strange term, but it does not come from the People's Republic of China, but has been used since ancient times. Outer Mongolia (外蒙) was used to describe the area of today's state of Mongolia and Inner Mongolia (内蒙) was used to describe the part of Mongolia that is now the autonomous Mongolian region in the People's Republic of China (Өвөр Монголын Өөртөө Засах Орон). Mausoleum is also not a correct term, it would be better to call this place Lord's Enclosure (i.e. shrine), the traditional name among the Mongolians, since the body is not buried there. "The main hall is actually a cenotaph where the coffin contains no body (only headdresses and accessories), because the actual tomb of Genghis Khan has never been discovered." There is an increasing turn to shamanism, or rather tengrism, not only in Mongolia, but also in Inner Mongolia, which explains this mausoleum. I could also imagine other motives, such as meeting the needs of the PRC's domestic tourism, but that is speculation.
Is the Genghis Khan Equestrian Statue worth visiting? In any case, you should take advantage of the opportunity to visit. There may be more people visiting around a holiday, but seeing how Mongolian visitors interact with the memorial is also interesting.
Links and Annotations:
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equestrian_statue_of_Genghis_Khan and https://mn.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A7%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%B3%D0%B8%D1%81_%D1%85%D0%B0%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%8B_%D0%BC%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%8C%D1%82_%D1%85%D3%A9%D1%88%D3%A9%D3%A9
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burial_place_of_Genghis_Khan
[3] https://mn.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D3%A8%D0%B2%D3%A9%D1%80_%D0%9C%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B3%D0%BE%D0%BB
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