Jiayuguan Pass, the west end of the Great Wall in Gansu Province. [Photo/China News Service]

A mass maintenance project to return Jiayuguan Pass, the west end of the Great Wall in Gansu province, to its former histric grandeur is coming to an end.

Dubbed "No 1 Strategic Pass in the World", Jiayuguan Pass is the starting point of a section of the Great Wall constructed during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

Repair work started in May, 2012 and cost about 305 million yuan (about $15 million).

The whole maintenance project included the Jiayuguan section of the Great Wall, the Jiayuguan world cultural heritage monitoring center and Jiayuguan world heritage exhibition.

Natural factors like wind erosion, weathering, earthquakes and floods, as well as human factors like construction and other activities had caused much damage over time.

Part of the Jiayuguan section's walls were cracked, with rain and wind having corroded their foundations, leading to the weakening of beams and roof leakage, said Qiu Jian, head of Gansu Provincial Cultural Relics and Archaeology Institute.