page_title: Shenzhen
section_title: Cityscape
hierarchical_section_title: Shenzhen / Cityscape
caption_attribution_description: English: Shenzhen Skyline from Nanshan 2016
context_page_description: Shenzhen is a major sub-provincial city on the east bank of the Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern Guangdong province, People's Republic of China. It forms part of the Pearl River Delta megalopolis, bordering Hong Kong to the south, Huizhou to the northeast and Dongguan to the northwest, and shares maritime boundaries with Guangzhou, Zhongshan and Zhuhai to the west and southwest across the estuary.
  Shenzhen's cityscape results from its vibrant economy—made possible by rapid foreign investment following the institution of the policy of "reform and opening-up" in 1979. The city is a leading global technology hub, dubbed by media China's Silicon Valley. It was one of the fastest-growing cities in the world in the 1990s and the 2000s, and has been ranked second on the list "top 10 cities to visit in 2019" by Lonely Planet.
  Shenzhen, which roughly follows the administrative boundaries of Bao'an County, officially became a city in 1979, taking its name from the former county town, whose train station was the last stop on the Mainland Chinese section of the railway between Canton and Kowloon. In 1980, Shenzhen was established as China's first special economic zone.
context_section_description: Shenzhen has been dubbed by The Guardian as "the world leader completing new skyscrapers," as it managed to complete 14 skyscrapers that are above 200 meters in 2018, four more than Dubai, and keeping this title for three years. In addition, the city is home to the most number of skyscrapers above 200 meters than any other cities in the world, with 82 completed as of July 2019. The city is ranked the third in the world in terms of the number of buildings above 150 meters, with 223 of them completed as of July 2019, after Hong Kong and New York City. There were more skyscrapers completed in Shenzhen in the year 2016 than in the whole of the US and Australia combined. The construction boom continues today with over 60 skyscrapers under construction across the city as of 2019. The tallest building in Shenzhen is the 599-meter, 115 floor Ping An Finance Centre, which is also the second tallest in China and the fourth tallest building in the world. The second-tallest building is the Kingkey 100, rising 441.8 metres (1,449 ft) and containing 100 floors of office and hotel spaces. Shenzhen is also the home to the Shun Hing Square (Diwang Building), the tallest in Asia (if the antenna is taken into account) when it was built in 1996. Guomao Building was furthermore the tallest building in China when it was completed in 1985.
  In addition to the Shenzhen's modern skyscrapers, Shenzhen also has a significant number of historical buildings. Chiwan Fort is located on a small seaside hill in the Nanshan District. Today, what is left only represents a fragment of the large fortress, as it was partially destroyed by the British during the Opium Wars. Tianhou Temple in the Nanshan District is dedicated to the goddess Mazu, a tutelary deity for fishermen and sailors. According to legend, the temple was founded in 1410 by Admiral Zheng He after his fleet survived a strong storm in the Pearl River Delta. The temple is repeatedly rebuilt and repaired. Part of the temple was converted to a museum, but the rest still continues to function as a religious building. The tomb of the last emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhao Bing, is located in the Nanshan district. The modern tomb dates back to the end of the 19th century, when a Hong Kong clan announced one of the imperial tombs after a long search, though this is disputed by historians. The tomb was reconstructed at the beginning of the 20th century, but later it fell into neglect until it was restored again in the 1980s. Dapin Fortress is located in the eastern part of the city, in the same area. It was built in 1394 to protect the coast from pirates and in 1571 suffered a long siege of Japanese corsairs. It later turned into a typical town during the Qing Dynasty, and during the First Opium War, the fortress garrison participated in the fight against the British. Walls and gates, narrow streets, temples, and the residence of the commandant in the fortress are still preserved today.  There is an old fortified Hakka village in the Longgang District, whose the architectural features of which are complemented by the Hakka Culture Museum.
  The old town of Nantou (or Xin'an), located in the Nanshan District, has several historical sites dating back to the Ming and Qing Dynasties. From the 4th century, there existed a significant city, but today most of the old buildings have been replaced by modern buildings. However, there are still a few historical buildings, such as fortress walls and gates dating back to the Ming period, the Guandi Temple (Guan Yu), some military and civilian buildings (for example, the residence of officials, the shop, and the opium house), and several streets.
caption: Skyline of Shenzhen from the Nanshan District.
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