In the spring of AD 737, on his way to a border town where garrisons were stationed, Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907) poet-official Wang Wei and his entourage stopped off at what is now Shapotou, 16 kilometers west of Zhongwei county in the northwestern Ningxia Hui autonomous region.

Struck by the raw beauty of the desert and the Yellow River, the weary poet composed a work that would become a timeless classic.

Perhaps one of the most memorable lines is this: "In the vast desert rises straight, lonely smoke, the grand, long river reflects the round setting sun".