Stone Carvings on the Front Peak of Huaguoshan

Stone Carvings on the Front Peak of Huaguoshan

The Stone Carvings on the Front Peak of Huaguoshan are protected as a cultural heritage site under Jiangsu Province.

The Cliff Inscriptions in Water Curtain Cave are located on the rock walls outside the cave at Water Curtain Cave in Huaguoshan Scenic Area, Huaguoshan Subdistrict, Haizhou District, Lianyungang City. All inscriptions are carved directly into the cliff face, featuring scripts including seal, clerical, regular, and running scripts. Based on the inscribed dates, these carvings were created during the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Ming Dynasty carvings include "High Mountains and Flowing Waters," "Divine Spring Moistening All," "Spirit Spring"; the Qing Dynasty carvings include "Yinxinshi House." The content of the Water Curtain Cave inscriptions all record and describe the scenic beauty of the cave, possessing certain historical value. In 1982, it was announced as one of the first batch of cultural heritage protection units in Lianyungang City.

The inscription titled "Record of Visiting Qingfeng Peak" is located on a cracked section of a massive natural rock about 10 meters east of Chaoyang Cave—one of the "Seventy-Two Caves" in Huaguoshan Scenic Area, Huaguoshan Subdistrict, Haizhou District, Lianyungang City—and approximately 30 meters north of the "One-Line Sky." The inscription is carved on a "natural stele" leaning against "Bajie Rock." This "natural stele" is 230 cm wide and 327 cm tall, bearing the text “Record of Visiting Qingfeng Peak” in 1,062 regular script characters, with each character measuring 4×7 cm and the signature 3×6 cm. The stele was carved in the 13th year of the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty (1585 AD), authored and written by Tang Boyuan. Its content mainly documents the scenery, historic sites, and local legends of Mount Yuntai. The "Record of Visiting Qingfeng Peak" stele is a major work among Ming Dynasty steles and serves as physical material for studying the history of Mount Yuntai. In 1982, it was announced as one of the first batch of cultural heritage protection units in Lianyungang City.

The Stone Inscriptions at Zhaohai Pavilion are located in the "Seventy-Two Caves" area of Huaguoshan Scenic Area, Huaguoshan Subdistrict, Haizhou District, Lianyungang City, carved on the cave walls and cliffs near Zhaohai Pavilion. These inscriptions include dedications, carvings, poems, and steles, in scripts such as seal, clerical, Wei-style, regular, and running scripts—all from the Qing Dynasty and the Republican Era. The main pieces include three Qing Dynasty inscriptions and nine Republican Era carvings. Among them, the large Wei-style characters “Looking at the Mirror of the Vast World” (环瀛仰镜) are the most famous, and the postscript allows for the inference of Li Ruiqing’s date of death. The Zhaohai Pavilion stone inscriptions contain considerable content related to mountain climbing and sea viewing, making them important materials for researching the historical and geographical changes of Mount Yuntai. In 1982, it was announced as one of the first batch of cultural heritage protection units in Lianyungang City. In 2011, it was listed as part of the seventh batch of cultural heritage protection units in Jiangsu Province.

Protected Area Scope:

Water Curtain Cave Cliff Inscriptions: East to 10 m east of the cave, west to 10 m west of the cave, north to 15 m above the cave; Record of Visiting Qingfeng Peak Stele: South to the cliff with the “natural stele” as the center; Zhaohai Pavilion: 20 m in all directions with Zhaohai Pavilion (Seventy-Two Caves) as the center, and 50 m in all directions.

Huaguoshan Subdistrict: 2013 Administrative Division Adjustment: Huaguoshan Township was abolished and Huaguoshan Subdistrict Office was established. The office of Huaguoshan Subdistrict is located at No. 26, Huaguoshan North Road, Dacun Residential Committee, with an administrative area of 39.7 square kilometers, a population of 20,800, and jurisdiction over seven village committees—Xintan, Danglu, Feiquan, Qianjin, Xincun, Xiaocun, Qianyun—and the Dacun Residential Committee.

Huaguoshan Subdistrict is located in the eastern suburban area of Xinpu District, Lianyungang City, named after Mount Huaguoshan, and is one of Jiangsu Province’s Hundred Famous Towns. The area’s Mount Huaguoshan enjoys the reputation of being the “Foremost Scenic Wonder of the East China Sea,” and currently falls under the administration of Xinpu District... More detailed information on Huaguoshan Subdistrict ++

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of Cultural Heritage Protection Units in Jiangsu Province