An aerial photo shows excavations inside the imperial worship site in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia autonomous region. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

An imperial worship site of the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-557) was recently unearthed in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia autonomous region — the first find of its kind in China.

The round site covers an area of 10,000 square meters and is part of a set of mountain ruins in the city's northern region at altitudes up to 1,660 meters.

This is the first time that archaeologists have excavated a Northern Wei Dynasty imperial worship site.

"Although there are many historical records related to imperial worship in the Northern Wei Dynasty, no sites have been found before," said Zhang Wenping, deputy head of the Regional Research Institute for Cultural Relics and Archaeology.

Archaeologists work at the imperial worship site in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia autonomous region. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The site was discovered in the 1980s but wasn't excavated until 2019, Zhang said. In recent years, local residents have cultivated around the site, increasingly causing damage, so it was necessary to clarify its nature as soon as possible and properly protect it, given the significance of the site, provincial authorities said.

Pottery, stone and ironwork used for worship were found during the excavation, helping archaeologists further determine the site's general shape, structure and nature.

Archaeologists think the site is where the emperor worshiped roughly between the years 430 and 490, based on the relics excavated. The site is older than the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, which was built during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

The evolution of imperial worship and the characteristics of worship rituals may be uncovered in future excavations.

"The next step for us is to figure out the situation and layout of some specific parts of the site," Zhang said.