Linqing

Linqing is a county-level city under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Liaocheng in western Shandong Province, China. Linqing has played an important role in the history of China. In Ming and Qing times it was a great center for the distribution of textiles, grain and bricks and is also famous as the place where the tiles of the Great Wall and the Forbidden City were produced. Today the city's flourishing economy is based on a number of light industrial enterprises. Aside from the Grand Canal, sights include a distinctive promontory, a stupa a Ming-Dynasty Hui mosques and ruins of the old customs house, Linqing City Museum. In particular, the Sheli Pagoda near the Grand Canal is a well-known local landmark. It is located north-northwest of Liaocheng. The city is situated at the confluence of the Wei River and the Grand Canal.