Wanshouyan

Wanshouyan

Wanshouyan is a national key cultural relics protection unit.

The Wanshouyan Paleolithic cultural site is a national key cultural relics protection unit. It is composed of limestone with well-developed karst features, forming over a dozen caves. The Paleolithic cultural remains are buried within the Lingfeng Cave and Shipan Cave. The site covers a total area of more than 1,200 square meters, with an excavation area of 400 square meters. A man-made stone-paved floor dating back approximately 20,000 years was discovered in the lower cultural layer of the Shipan Cave — this is the first of its kind found in China and is extremely rare worldwide. A total of over 800 stone artifacts, a small number of bone and horn tools, and fossils of more than 20 animal species were unearthed, dating from 180,000 years ago to between 10,000 and 30,000 years ago. The Wanshouyan Paleolithic cultural site was discovered in the autumn of 1999, designated as a national key cultural relics protection unit in 2000, and ranked first among the top ten archaeological discoveries in China for that year.

Wanshouyan not only contains ancient human activity sites but also boasts a wealth of historical, cultural, and natural karst landscapes. Currently, the site has been included as one of the eight major scenic spots in the Sanyuan Forest Park.

Address: Located in Yanqian Town, west of Sanming City. It takes just over ten minutes by car to reach the foot of the mountain.

Ticket: 20 RMB

Yanqian Town: A town under the jurisdiction of Sanyuan District, Sanming City. Established as the Yanqian Commune in 1958, reorganized as a subdistrict in 1984, changed to a township in 1987, and upgraded to a town in 1992. It is located in the western part of the city, 32 kilometers from downtown. Covering an area of 330 square kilometers with a population of 20,000, the provincial Jinxie Highway runs through the town. It administers twelve village committees: Yanqian, Jikou, Wulong, Xiazhai, Xingqiao, Meishan, Fuyuan, Ouhang, Zengfang, Baiyekeng, Zhongshan, and Henghang, as well as the Yangyan Residential Committee. The main agricultural products include rice, citrus, watermelon, edible fungi, and livestock, serving as a supplementary food supply base for the city. Township industrial products include limestone and cement... More details about Yanqian Town ++

Further reading:

· Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units