Located at the center of the so-called “Pamir Knot,” a meeting point of the highest mountain ranges on the Eurasian continent, the Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs) was enlisted as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2013. 

The park covers more than 2.5 million hectares in the east of Tajikistan, central Asia.

As one of the most tectonically-active locations in the world, the park is unaffected by agriculture or permanent human settlements due to its potential for strong earthquakes. It is rarely inhabited. 

There are 1,085 glaciers, 170 rivers and more than 400 lakes in the park, among which lies the longest valley glacier outside the polar region. 

The park consists of high plateaus in the east and rugged mountains in the west, some over 7,000 meters high. There are huge temperature differences from season to season. 

Flora species from both southwestern and central Asian regions grow in the park. It also shelters nationally rare and threatened birds and mammals, such as Marco Polo Argali sheep, snow leopards and Siberian ibex. 

What are the cultural elements that best represent Asia? Follow the "Know Asia Better" series. It offers a glimpse of 47 Asian countries through architecture, art or cultural figures to show a diversified Asia that you may never have noticed before. With a theme of Exchanges and Mutual Learning among Asian Civilizations and Building a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind, the Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations will be held in Beijing in May.

（With input from whc.unesco.org)

(Cover image designed by Fan Chenxiao)