Quanzhou Stone Sprout

Quanzhou Stone Sprout

In the ancient city of Quanzhou, there is a unique historical relic—the world-renowned Stone Sprout. This peculiar stone formation is located on Turtle Hill in Huangjia Street, Fuqiao, on the north bank of the Jinjiang River outside the Xinmen Gate in downtown Quanzhou.

The Stone Sprout is made by stacking and carving five cylindrical granite blocks—thicker at the base and thinner at the top, with a slightly pointed end—resembling a giant sprout standing upright, hence its common name. To its south flows the lower reaches of the Jinjiang River, where the surging waters curve around the sprout before rushing into the sea. Because of this stone formation, this stretch of river is also nicknamed "Sprout River." Meanwhile, the Fuqiao Linzhang Bridge, located southwest of the Stone Sprout and originally built in the first year of the Huangyou era during the Northern Song Dynasty (1049), is also commonly referred to as the "Stone Sprout Bridge."

The Stone Sprout is entirely made of white granite, simply processed to retain its primitive, natural form. According to the *Quanzhou Prefecture Records*, in the fourth year of the Dazhong Xiangfu era during the Northern Song Dynasty (1011), then-Prefect Gao Huilian once "smashed the Stone Sprout out of personal spite." This suggests that the Stone Sprout existed long before the Northern Song period. After being damaged by Gao Huilian, it was not restored until the Chenghua era of the Ming Dynasty (1465–1487). Today, it is listed as a provincial-level cultural heritage site.

Scholars and experts have analyzed that this peculiar stone formation may be a remnant of totem worship from primitive tribes, or possibly related to phallic worship in Brahmanism or Hinduism—sharing the same origin as the phallic carvings on the "Shiva Totem Relief" found on two bluish-green granite pillars in the rear corridor of the Great Buddha’s Hall at Kaiyuan Temple. If this theory holds, the Stone Sprout was likely carved around the time when Hinduism was introduced to China during the Tang Dynasty. If it was instead a totem object of the ancient Baiyue people who originally lived in southern Quanzhou, then the Stone Sprout could date back even earlier.