The Great Wall of China has been officially declared even longer than previously thought, state-run media report.
The wall measures 21,196.18km (13,170.6956 miles) long based on the latest state survey results, state-run news agency Xinhua reported on Tuesday.
A preliminary study released in 2009 estimated the wall to be 8,850km long.
The world's largest man-made structure was built to protect China's northern border.
This is the first time such a definitive figure has been released, Xinhua reports.
The State Administration of Cultural Heritage released the results based on an archaeological survey done since 2007.
Previous estimates of the wall's length were mainly based on historical records.
Tong Mingkang, deputy chief, said that the survey revealed a total of 43,721 heritage sites that included stretches of the Great Wall, reports Xinhua.
Known to the Chinese as the "Long Wall of 10,000 Li", the Great Wall is a series of walls and earthen works begun in 500BC and first linked up under Qin Shi Huang in about 220BC.
Only 8.2% of the original wall remains intact, with the rest in poor condition, according to the report.
It was listed as a Unesco world heritage site in 1987.
Great Wall of China 'even longer' 20 April 2009
The Great Wall of China is even greater than previously thought, according to the first detailed survey to establish the length of the ancient barricade.
A two-year government mapping study found that the wall spans 8,850km (5,500 miles) - until now, the length was commonly put at about 5,000km.
Previous estimates of its length were mainly based on historical records.
Infra-red and GPS technologies helped locate some areas concealed over time by sandstorms, state media said.
The project found that there were wall sections of 6,259km, 359km of trenches, and 2,232km of natural defensive barriers such as hills and rivers.
The study was carried out by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage and the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping.
Barricade
Experts said the newly-discovered sections of the wall were built during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and stretch from Hu Mountain in northern Liaoning province to Jiayu Pass in western Gansu province.
The project will continue for another 18 months in order to map sections of the wall built during the Qin (221-206BC) and Han (206BC-9AD) Dynasties, the report said.
The wall, the world's largest man-made structure, was built to protect the northern border of the Chinese Empire.
Archaeologists had lobbied for the survey to be done to provide scholars with an accurate understanding of the construction.
Known to the Chinese as the "long Wall of 10,000 Li", the Great Wall is in fact a series of walls and earthen works begun in the 5th Century BC and first linked up under Qin Shi Huang in about 220BC.
It was listed as a Unesco world heritage site in 1987.
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