The Stone Wall Maze of Huangyaguan Great Wall, also known as the Eight Trigrams Confusing Maze, is located within the Huangyaguan Great Wall Scenic Area in the northern mountainous region of Jizhou District, Tianjin.
The construction of Huangyaguan Great Wall began in the Sui Dynasty. During the Ming Dynasty, when Qi Jiguang served as the commander-in-chief of Jizhen (a military defense area), he had the pass city built according to the principles of the Eight Trigrams (Bagua in Chinese). Covering an area of 40,000 square meters, the Stone Wall Maze takes the Tiaodiao Office (the command center) as its core. Starting from the northwest, it has eight zones built in line with the directions of the Eight Trigrams. Inside the city, there are more than 40 streets and over 100 traditional-style row houses, crisscrossing each other. The streets come in shapes like “T” and “loop”. Some intersect, and some are misaligned, making people feel that there is a road ahead but actually no way forward. The maze is also equipped with defensive facilities such as Life-and-Death Gates and Horse-Trapping Pits. In the past, if enemy soldiers broke in rashly, they would easily get lost and never return.
Today, when tourists walk through it, they also feel like being in a maze—perplexing yet full of fun. While moving through the maze, they may suddenly reach a dead end, or find a new passage where there seems to be no way. This unique layout not only reflects the wisdom of ancient military defense but also brings a novel experience to tourists.
In the drill ground of the Eight Trigrams Pass City, there is also an Eight Trigrams Maze Amusement Park covering an area of over 3,000 square meters. It draws on the essence of the Eight Trigrams formation from past dynasties. Hundreds of ancient-style low walls divide it into winding and twisting streets and lanes. At the center of the maze is a circular Taiji Platform, surrounded by square walls made of gray bricks, symbolizing the concept of “the sky is round and the earth is square” (a traditional Chinese cosmic view). The maze has one gate each on the east, south, west, and north sides. It is known as “the four gates are connected, leading to eight points, and there is only one way out”. Tourists can visit the maze during the day and take part in the “Wanhua Formation” performance at night. It combines participation, excitement, and fun in one.
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