Stone Carvings at the Lingkou Tomb Site

Stone Carvings at the Lingkou Tomb Site

The Lingkou Tomb Stone Carvings are a Jiangsu Provincial cultural relics protection unit.

Stone Carvings at the Lingkou Tomb Site

Jiangsu Provincial-Level Cultural Relics Protection Unit First and Second Batches, Adjusted and Announced in March 1982 The Lingkou Tomb Stone Carvings are located in Lingkou, Danyang City, from the Southern Dynasties period. In 1988, they were included as part of the "Danyang Southern Dynasties Tomb Stone Carvings" and designated as part of the Third Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units

Lingkou Stone Carvings

To the east of Lingkou Town in Danyang, there is a pair of tall stone qilin (mythical beasts), marking the main entrance to the imperial tomb areas of the Qi and Liang dynasties of the Southern Dynasties, known as the Qi-Liang Tomb Entrance. Currently, only a pair of damaged stone qilin remain at Lingkou. The eastern one is a bi-lu (a creature with two horns, also called Tianlu), and the western one is a single-horned qilin. The two stone beasts are about a hundred meters apart, separated by a small river. The Lingkou stone carvings are the largest existing stone tomb beasts from the Southern Dynasties in terms of volume, with both length and height reaching 4 meters and a width of about 2 meters, weighing approximately 30 tons in total. Both statues have damaged legs, currently supported by stone blocks. Their heads are also damaged to varying degrees, with the Tianlu’s head having been previously repaired with stone material. Judging from the carving style of the Lingkou stone carvings, they closely resemble those of the Xiao Luan's Xing'an Tomb from the Qi Dynasty’s Emperor Ming. They are tall and robust, with relatively short necks, wings composed of four smaller feathers forming one large wing, and feather patterns on the abdomen. They no longer exhibit the distinctively graceful curved aesthetic style seen in some earlier Southern Dynasties tomb beasts. It is possible that the Lingkou stone carvings were also carved during the reign of Emperor Ming of Qi.

Panoramic View of the Lingkou Stone Carvings

Stone Qilin of the Lingkou Stone Carvings

Stone Tianlu of the Lingkou Stone Carvings

Stone Tianlu of the Lingkou Stone Carvings

Stone Tianlu of the Lingkou Stone Carvings

Stone Qilin of the Lingkou Stone Carvings

Further Reading:

· First and Second Batches of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units