One of the most prosperous and prominent Christian communities in the history of East Asia was a Turkic tribe called Ongud active in present-day central Inner Mongolia during 9th -14th centuries. I want to use this thread to show some remains of their cities, cemeteries, and art: 
Onguds were converted to Christianity as early as the 9th c by Church of the East (Nestorian) priests who fled Central China due to the Tang emperor's persecution. Yet they rose to prominence in the 13th c by allying with Genghis Khan. Here're two 9th-c Nestorian stones in China.
With the wealth and power they received from Mongol (Yuan-dyn) rulers, Onguds built a splendid city (Olon Süme) in their homeland on the Mongolian grassland. In the ruins of the city, archaeologists uncovered foundations of a palace and a grand Nestorian or Roman Catholic church.
Christian cemeteries with altogether hundreds of tombs were found close to the city & nearby settlements. The tombs contain, or marked by, stones carved with crosses & inscriptions in Syriac, Mongolian, sometimes Chinese. Though heavily looted, they yielded some gorgeous Items.
Over the last century, large numbers of so-called Nestorian crosses were discovered from the Ongud region. The largest body of them is in the collection of HKU. Many Onguds converted to Catholicism for a short period in the late 13th c, thus a crucifix necklace also appeared.
It was under the lead of renowned Prince Korgiz ("George") thousands of Onguds turned to Catholicism, but only reconverted after his death. Killed in Central Asia in 1298, he was buried sumptuously near Beijing in a tomb (L) recalling the 10th-c Samanid mausoleum(R) in Bukhara.
According to Chinese sources, Rabban Sauma (13th c), one of the greatest Christian pilgrims in history, was also an Ongud. As a diplomat of Yuan dyn, he traveled from his birthplace Beijing all the way to Constantinople, Rome, Paris. This stone was from his monastery near Beijing
After the fall of the Yuan dyn, the Onguds in Mongolia gradually gave up their Christian faith and became followers of Tibetan Buddhism like their Mongol neighbors.
All images are from online sources. To learn more about the culture and history of Onguds, here are some books:
All images are from online sources. To learn more about the culture and history of Onguds, here are some books:
