Dazu Beishan Rock Carvings — Chongqing Northern Mountain Gallery
Beishan Fowan · Dazu north mountain
Late Tang to Southern Song (892 – 1178 CE)·Chinese Buddhist with Song gentry patron·🇨🇳 Chongqing Municipality, Dazu District, Beishan Mountain southern foot 2 km north of Dazu town, China
About
About Dazu Beishan Rock Carvings — Chongqing Northern Mountain Gallery
Northern mountain gallery of Dazu Rock Carvings 2 km north of Dazu town at Beishan (Northern Mountain) 420 m, with 264 caves and 10,000 statues of Late Tang to Southern Song (892–1178 CE) including the 7 m Wei Tuo and Song gentry donor reliefs in slender Song style contrasting Baodingshan's dramatic 13th-century Tang–Song bridge. UNESCO 912.
Why it mattersBeishan slender Song statues provide counterpoint to Dazu Baoding's theatrical 13th c., showing 300-year evolution
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Beishan vs Baodingshan workshop continuity
- 02Song gentry donation portrait significance
Theories
- 01Song civilian Buddhism democratization
- 02Beishan slender style regionalism
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- 892 Tang start; 1128 Southern Song completion
- Period
- Late Tang to Southern Song (892 – 1178 CE)
- Culture
- Chinese Buddhist with Song gentry patron
- Purpose
- Hill temple for Song civilian elites vs imperial Baoding
- Abandoned
- c.1178 Song fall
- Excavation
- Unexcavated
892
Wei Junjing starts Beishan
1128
Southern Song completion
1999
UNESCO inscription
On the ground
Structures & features
29.7100° N · 105.7100° E · 420 m · 3 mapped features
Fowan Niche 155 – Wei Tuo
sculpture7 m guardian general Wei Tuo with 2 m sword
29.7110° N · 105.7112° ECave 155 – Song Donor Relief
reliefLine of Song gentry donors in slender robe
29.7095° N · 105.7105° EBeishan Ridge Walkway
walkway300 m cliff walk linking 5 tiers of niches
29.7105° N · 105.7110° E
Gallery