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Yangtze River - 1995

Yangtze River - 1995

Jacek Pałkiewicz
2006-06-18 21:30:25

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Liang, thinking that dawn was reaking and fearing discovery, abandoned his task. When he later discovered the monk's mischief, he was so provoked that he hung the monk upside down over a precipice. The rock below Meng Liang Stairway is known as Hanging Monk Rock (Daodiao Heshangshi). History records, however, that General Yang was not buried here and the steps are probably the remains of an ancient river pathway. Sections of a city wall, 1,400 years old, have been found on top of Bai Yan Shan so it is possible that the pathway led to this early settlement. Another theory about the stairway suggests that it was built to provide access to the rare medicinal herbs which grow high on the cliff faces.

At the highest point above Hanging Monk Rock one can see Armour Cave (Kuanaiia Dong) where it is said a Song-dynasty woman general hid her weapons. In 1958 the cave was explored and found to contain three 2,000-year-old wooden coffins from the Kingdom of Ba, in which were bronze swords and lacquered wooden combs.

Near the Meng Liang Stairway is the Drinking Phocnix Spring, a stalagmite in the shape of a phoenix drinking the sweet spring--water. Nearby is the Chalk Wall (Fengbi Tang) where 900 characters, dating from the Song dynasty, have been carved by famous calligraphers on the rock face. The site derives its name from the limestone powder which was used to smooth rock surfaces before being carved.

On the north side of the river, opposite Meng Liang Stairway, is a coffee-coloured precipice called. The name refers to some square configurations in the rock face, which were supposed to be bellows used by Lu Ban, the god of carpenters. In 1971 the secret of Bellows Gorge was revealed, when ancient suspended wooden coffins, similar to those found in the Armour Cave, were discovered in the caves of the precipice. Some of these have been moved to museums, but three remain and can be seen from the river.

Wise Grandmother's Spring ...