[1] The Qing Empire conquered this largely Muslim region in the 1750s by defeating the Dzungar Mongols with their superior weaponry in a series of battles.

[5] The arid landscape of southern Xinjiang has long been connected to both East Asia and West Asia by historical trade routes such as the Silk Road and the land around these crossroads became the location for most of the Uyghur Islamic structures in Xinjiang.

The richly textured bricks are carved into intricate, repetitive, geometric and floral mosaic patterns, such as stylized flowers and rhombuses.

Positioned in the tower are several long, narrow windows at different heights and facing different directions that provide light and ventilation.

[2] The Emin Minaret is on the northeast corner of the Uyghur Mosque, a rectangular structure with an iwan or mihrab, a pointed-arch niche enclosed on three sides but open to a large covered courtyard on the fourth.

[2] [5] The towering architectural shape of a minaret, always taller than it is wide, is a clear sign of the presence of Islam as are the abstract, geometric decorative elements.