List of landmarks in Mongolia;
- Chinggis Square formally Grand Chinggis Khaan Square,and previously known as Sukhbaatar Square,is a central square in Mongolia's capital,Ulaanbaatar. The official name was changed in 2013 in honor of Genghis Khan,considered the founding father of Mongolia. A large colonnade monument to Genghis Khan,as well as to Ogedei Khan and Kublai Khan dominates the square's north side directly in front of the Saaral Ordon (Government Palace). The center of the square features an equestrian statue of Damdin Sukhbaatar,one of the leaders of Mongolia's 1921 Revolution. The square,completed in 2006 in time for the 800th anniversary of Genghis Khan's coronation. Surrounding the square are government buildings. During Mongolia's socialist period,Sukhbaatar Square was the scene for annual civil,youth,and military parades until 1989,with party and government leaders ascending to the top of Sukhbaatar's Mausoleum to view parades on May 1,July 11,and November 7 each year. Large parades were also stages and the square is the scene of major states ceremonies,cultural events,and exhibitions. Head of states of foreign countries generally pay respects in front of the statue of Sukhbaatar.
- Gandantegchinlen Monastery is a Tibetan-style Buddhist monastery in the capital of Ulaanbaatar that has been restored and revitalized since 1990. The Tibetan name translates to the "Great Palace of Complete Joy". It currently has 150 monks in residence,it features a 26.5-meter-high statue of Avalokitesvara. The monastery was constructed by the order of the 5th Jebtsundamba Khutuktu in 1809. The first temple was the Gungaachoilin Datsan,only one wooden pillar remains from this temple. In 1838,the Gandantegchinlen Monastery was build along with the private residence of the Jebtsundamba Khutuktu, the 13th Dalai Lama stayed in the residence in 1904. In 1840 the Vajradhara Temple was build,in 1869 the Zuu Temple,in 1913 the tall Avalokitesvara Temple was build. In 1925,the temple for keeping the remains of 8th Jebtsundamba Khutuktu was build,it is now the monastery library. The original statue,made of copper,was build after the appeals to the Mongolian public,it features 2,286 precious stones and it's gilded with gold leaf.
- Choijin Lama Temple is a Buddhist monastery in Ulaanbaatar,the complex is consists of four temples originally occupied by the brother of the ruler Bogd Khan,Choijin Lama Luvsankhaidav,who was the state oracle at the time. The complex constructed in 1904 and completed in 1908,in 1938 the Stalinist government converted the complex into a museum. The main temple features an 18th-century gilt statue of Buddha Sakyamuni with a statue of Choijin Lama Luvsankhaidav on the Buddha's right and the embalmed corpse of Baldanchoimbolon on his left. In addition,the temple boast a copious collections of religious instruments,thanka paintings,a copy of the 108-volume Kangyur and hand-printed 226-volume Tengyur brought from Tibet by the Bogd Khan,and the collections of cham dance masks. The annex to the temple contains a heated ger and a central square in which Choijin Lama Luvsankhaidav performed ritual. The Zuu Temple,dedicated to the buddha Sakyamuni features papier-mache sculptures of Buddha in the past,present,and future. The 16 disciples of Buddha appear on the temple walls with four Maharantsa protectors shown sitting in caves on either side of the doors. The Yidam Temple was used as a place for prayer by Choijin Lama Luvsankhaidav,and therefore closed to the public. In its center is a gilt bronze sculpture of one of the 84 Indian yogis,or Mahassidha.Also depicted are the tantric gods Kalacakra,Mahamaya,Vajradhara and others with their shakti or consorts in postures of meditation that symbolize power and strength. The fourth temple,the temple of Amugulang or peace,is directed to the first Mongolian reincartation of Boghda Jevzundamba,Undur Geneer Zanabazar (1635-1724).
- Erdene Zuu Monastery is probably the earliest surviving Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. Located in Ovorkhangai Province,approximately 2 kilometres north-east from the center of Kharkhorin and adjacent to the ancient city of Karakorum,it is part of the Orkhon Valley Cultural Landscape World Heritage Site. Abtai Sain Khan,ruler of the Khalkha Mongols ordered the construction of the Erdene Zuu Monastery in 1585,stones from the nearby ruins of the ancient Mongol capital Karakorum where used in its construction. The monastery's temple walls were painted,and the Chinese-style roof covered with green tiles. The monastery was damaged in 1688 during one of the many wars between Dzungars and Khalkha Mongols. Locals dismantled the wooden fortification of the abandoned monastery,and it was rebuild in the 18th-century and by 1872 it had a full 62 temples and housed up to 1,000 monks. In 1939,the communist ordered to destroyed the monastery as part of the purge that obliterated hundreds of monasteries in Mongolia and killed over ten thousands of monks. Three small temples and the external wall with the stupas survived the initial onslaught. In 1947 the temples were converted into museum. Today,Enzene Zuu Monastery remains an active Buddhist monastery as well as a museum that is open to tourist.
- National Museum of Mongolia is one of national museum in Mongolia,located in Ulaanbaatar. The National Museum is a cultural,scientific,and educational organization which is responsible for the collections,conversation and interpretations of the objects under its curation. The museum is currently recognized as one of the leading museum of Mongolia. The significant responsibility for preserving the Mongolian cultural heritage therefore lies within the museum. It is also responsible for developing museological guidelines for museum in the nation. Exhibitions covers prehistory,pre-Mongol Empire history,Mongol Empire,Mongolia during Qing rule,ethnography and traditional life,and twentieth century history. The ethnographic collections has significant displays of the traditional dress of various Mongolian ethnic groups and of snuff bottles. Most exhibits have labels in both Mongolian and English. The museum publishes one or more issues of its in-house journal each year,with articles in Mongolian or foreign languages,including Russian and English.
- Amarbayasgalant Monastery or the "Monastery of Tranquil Felicity",is one of the three largest Buddhist monatic center in Mongolia. The monastery complex is located in the Iven Valley near the Selenge River. The nearest town is Erdenet which is about 60 kilometres to the southwest. The monastery was establish to serve as a final resting place for Zanabasar ( 1635-1723). Construction took place between 1727 and 1736 and Zanabasar's remains were transferred in 1779. The overriding style is Chinese,with some Mongol and Tibetan influence . Originally consisting of over 40 temples,the monastery was laid out in a symmetrical pattern,with the main buildings succeeding one another along a North-South axis,while the secondary buildings are laid out on parallel sides. The Amarbayasgalant is one of the very few to have partly escaped destruction during the Stalinist purge of 1937,after which only the buildings of central section remained. Today,only 28 temples remained. Restoration work begun in 1988 with funds provided by UNESCO and private sources and some of the new statuary was commissioned in New Delhi,Indian.
- Baldan Bereeven Monastery is a Gelugpa (yellow hat) Buddhist monastery,located in the Baruun Jargarant River Valley Omnogelder district,Khentii Province. First establish in 1654,the monastery grew to be one of the largest and most important in Mongolia at its height in the mid 19th-century,housing up to 8,000 monks. The monastery and temple complex was destroyed by Mongolia's communist regime in 1937. Today,three temples have been restored and grounds include the remains of nearly 50 temples,stupas,and other religious edifices. The monastery grounds are surrounded by scenic and sacred mountains of the Khentii mountain range,the mountains (four of them) are said to be resemble animals:a lion on the east;a dragon on the south;a tiger on the west;and a Garuda on the north. The monastery itself is backed by the steep cliff of Munkh Ulziit mountain were many cliff carvings,stone carvings with different images of Buddhist gods,inscriptions of religious mantras,and a large Soyombo symbol can be found. The main temple,called Dash Tsepel Ling,was build in the mid 1700s and was completed in 1776,the Tsogchin Dugan (great hall) Temple was completed in 1813. The Tsogchin Dugan was one of the largest building in all of Mongolia,measuring almost 30 meters by 30 meters,and almost 12 meters in tall. By 1850 when it's main temple was remodeled,Baldan Bereeven reach its peak as a teaching monastery. It contained four separate colleges and more than twenty temples with a monastic population reaching nearly 8,000. Around the year 1900 an epidemic wiped out half of the monastic community leaving between 2000-3000 monks. The monastery's fortunes suffered further with the establishment of Mongolia's communist regime in 1921,many monks were driven from the monastery when large scale persecution of Buddhist church begun in the 1930s. Many of the remaining monks were forcibly removed,shot and buried in mass graves while others were forcibly laicized and sent to labor camps. Younger monks were returned to their families. Today,Baldan Bereeven remained off-limit for nearly six-decades. Following the Democratic Revolution in 1990 a handful of older monks returned to the monastery,and restoration efforts for several of the monasteries main temples begun. In 2012 the Baldan Bereeven monastery and the surrounding area were placed on the tentative list to be nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Winter Palace of the Bogd Khan is located in southern Ulaanbaatar the capital of Mongolia to the road to Zaisan. The Palace is now a museum and it is the only one left of the originally four palace residences of the eight Jebtsundamba Khutughtu,who was later proclaimed as Bogd Khan,or the Emperor of Mongolia. Build between 1893 to 1903,the complex includes six temples,each one of them contains Buddhist artworks,including sculptures and thangka. It is one of the few Mongolian historical attraction which have been neither destroyed by the Soviets or Mongolian communist. On displays are many of Bogd Khan's possessions,such as his throne and bed,his collections of art and stuffed animals,his ornate ceremonial ger,a pair of ceremonial boots given to the Khan by Russian Tsar Nicholas II,and also a jewelled regalia worn by the Bogd Khan's pet Elephant.
- Genghis Khan Equestrian Statue is part of the Genghis Khan Statue Complex is a 40-metres tall statue of Genghis Khan on horseback,on the bank of Tuul River,Ulaanbaatar. The statue symbolically pointed east toward his birthplace. It is on top of the Genghis Khan Statue Complex,visitor centre,itself 10 metres tall,with 36 column representing the 36 Khan from Genghis to Ligdan Khan. Visitors walk to the head of the horse through its chest and neck,were they have a panoramic view. The main statue area will be surrounded by 200 ger,designed and arranged like the pattern of the horse brand marks that were used by the 13th-century Mongol tribes. The attached museum has exhibitions relating to the Bronze Age and Xiongnu archaeological cultures in Mongolia,which show everyday utensils,belt buckles,knives,sacred animals,etc. and a second exhibition on the Great Khan period in the 13th and 14th centuries which has ancient tools,goldsmith subjects and some Nestorian crosses and rosaries. Next to the museum there is a tourist and recreation center,which covers 212 hectares.
- Zaisan Memorial is a memorial in the southern area of Ulaanbaatar that honors Soviet soldiers killed in World War II. Located on the hill in the southern part of the city,the memorial features a circular a memorial painting that depict scenes of friendship between the people of USSR and Mongolia. After driving to the uppermost parking lot on the hill,visitors must make a climb of three hundred steps before reaching the monument and mural. Those who make the climb are rewarded with a panoramic view of the entire city of Ulaanbaatar in the valley below, as well as the Tuul River flowing past the city. In 2003,a tank memorial,which previously have been located on the crossroads between Zaisan and the city center,was moved to the foot of the hill,it features a Soviet tank from a brigade paid for by the Mongolia people. The tank memorial includes a map showing the route the brigade took from Moscow in 1943 to its participation in the fall of Berlin in 1945.