Magu Mountain Stone Carvings

Magu Mountain Stone Carvings

The Magu Mountain Stone Carvings are cultural relics protected at the provincial level of Jiangxi Province.

The mountain stone carvings (including "A Spoonful More", "Moon Spring", and "Jade Ribbon Flying in Pair") are located in Nancheng County, Jiangxi Province, and date from the Ming and Qing dynasties. Originally, they were part of the Xian Du Guan Temple, the tomb of the immortal Deng, and the stone carved statues—all of which have been destroyed. Now only “A Spoonful More”, “Moon Spring”, and “Jade Ribbon Flying in Pair” remain. They are municipal-level cultural relics protection units of Fuzhou City and provincial-level cultural relics protection units of Jiangxi Province.

The mountain belongs to the remaining ridges of Junfeng Mountain in the Wuyi Mountain range, with an elevation of less than one thousand meters. Legend has it that during the Tang Dynasty, the immortal Deng Ziyang cultivated Taoism here; Taoist priests came to lecture, and prestigious guests frequented the site, making it a center of Taoism in the southeast. In the Qin Dynasty, the great scholar Hua Zikang traveled across the land to live and write here on Mayuan. He had a stone chamber for storing his books on the mountain. The Southern Song poet Xie Lingyun once visited the famed site and left behind poems extolling Magu Mountain. The cliff inscriptions, rock carvings, and sculptures reached an extraordinary level of craftsmanship. During the Jin Dynasty, the eminent physician Ge Hong came here to refine elixirs and praised the “Divine Spring” as one of the finest waters he had encountered across famous mountains and rivers. When Yan Zhenqing, the prefect of Fuzhou in the Tang Dynasty, toured the mountain, he personally authored and inscribed the “Magu Immortal Terrace Record”, ranked second only to Wang Xizhi’s “Preface to the Poems Composed at the Orchid Pavilion”. In the Northern Song Dynasty, the philosopher Li Gou lectured in the “Hall of Ten Sages” on Magu Mountain, attracting hundreds of students from various regions. It's no wonder that Wang Hua, the vice commissioner of Guangxi in the Ming Dynasty, wrote in the “Collection of Magu Preface”: “Our Xu is a renowned district of Jiangyou, famed throughout the world for its beautiful landscapes. Among them, Magu is especially distinctive. Hence, from the Jin, Tang, and Song dynasties to our present dynasty, many esteemed figures, drawn by its reputation, have surely made a visit.”

In the third year of the Tang Dali era (768), the calligrapher Yan Zhenqing, serving as prefect of Fuzhou, visited Magu Mountain. He personally wrote and inscribed a text on stone, erected beside the “Immortal Terrace” on the mountain. The inscription contains 887 characters, showcasing Yan’s dignified and vigorous calligraphy style, and is considered one of his masterpieces. This stele was later destroyed by lightning. In 1991, when local authorities developed the area, the “Magu Immortal Terrace Record” was restored for public viewing.

Magu Mountain is known for its drifting clouds, soaring peaks, and lush cliffs, as well as for its mysterious caves and rocks, and the marvel of the “Jade Ribbon Flying in Pair”. As you hike up from the foot of the mountain, halfway up you’ll find a pavilion called the “Mid-Mountain Pavilion”. To its left, a waterfall cascades down. Looking up, you can see two streams of water plunging down like two white dragons, falling over a hundred feet onto the jagged rocks and into the pool below. The splashing water resembles snowflakes or misty spray. Standing before the falls, you’ll feel a refreshing chill even in the peak of summer. On the rock wall nearby are inscriptions reading “Jade Ribbon Flying in Pair”, penned by Hu Renfu, the magistrate of Jianchang Prefecture during the Ming Dynasty. Through the veil of falling water, the characters appear vigorous and powerful. On the northern side of the cliffs, below the waterfall, there is a “Waterfall Viewing Pavilion”.

Ascending several hundred steps along the stream, you’ll come to the “Dragon Gate Bridge”, an elegant and uniquely designed structure. It is a Song Dynasty-style earthen temple that was renovated during the Qing Dynasty. A long pavilion is built atop the bridge, resembling a room inside, with stone benches on both sides and doors on the east and west, as well as windows on the north and south. From the railing, visitors can gaze out to see rugged rocks and towering pines, and looking down, they’ll spot a “Water Curtain Cave”. The cave entrance is hidden behind a curtain of falling water, resembling a crescent moon hanging upside down from the cliff. Inside the cave is bright and spacious, able to accommodate over a hundred people. Below the Water Curtain Cave is the Dragon Pool, unfathomably deep and said to connect to the East Sea. In the pool, a protruding rock is clearly inscribed with a large traditional Chinese character “禮” (ritual), still visible despite centuries of water impact. Legend says a dragon often dwells on this rock, paying homage to the stars. All around are oddly shaped rocks forming small pools—some star-shaped (“Star Pool”), some moon-shaped (“Moon Pool”), as well as Turtle Pool, Crouching Lion Pool, and more. Some stand upright, others lean or squat in various poses, creating a breathtaking scene.

Above the bridge gate is an inscription by the Qing Dynasty poet Zeng Yao: “The heavens paint a rainbow over the vast sea embracing the Cang Cave; the earth sends down a silver river beside the clear-misted pavilion of Kuanglu.” On the eastern side is a stone-carved gate plaque reading “Dragon Gate Scenic Site”, flanked by couplets: “Endless views of beautiful waters and shining mountains reveal ten thousand households in an unobstructed realm; lamenting the ever-changing world of seas into mulberry fields, the vast universe is viewed just as it is.” On the western side is a stone plaque reading “Cinnabar Cloud Cave Heaven”, with couplets: “A secluded path through vines leads to woodcutters’ axes; deep in spring, divine grass locks the cave mist.” Both “Cinnabar Cloud Cave Heaven” and “Dragon Gate Scenic Site” are stone inscriptions written by people of the Song Dynasty.

Below the Dragon Gate Bridge on the left lies the renowned “Divine Spring”. Legend says the Divine Spring is also the Wine Spring, commonly known as “A Spoonful More”. The spring water seeps through crevices in the rocks at the base of the cliff into a stone basin—just enough to fill a spoon. No matter how much you scoop, the water never runs dry, hence the name “A Spoonful More”. During the Ming Dynasty, imperial censor Shao Meidun visited the mountain, drank from the spring, and inscribed the words “A Spoonful More”—his bold brush strokes can still be seen today. The water is cool, clear, and sweet to the taste. Pour it into a jade cup, and it will not overflow even when full. Tests show that this spring water is six and four-tenths liang heavier per hundred jin than ordinary mountain water. In the Jin Dynasty, the great physician Ge Hong, after traveling all over China’s famous mountains, was astonished by the uniqueness of the Divine Spring. He set up his alchemy furnace here, lingering among the springs and rocks. To this day, the remains of Ge Hong’s Immortal Well can still be found.

Below the Dragon Gate Bridge, on the southern side of the Jinxi Stream, there are two Ming Dynasty stone carvings: “Sun Spring” and “Moon Spring”. As their names suggest, the “Sun Spring” resembles a rising sun and is about the size of a basin, while the “Moon Spring” is shaped like a crescent moon, roughly half the size of a basin, with a constant trickle of water year-round. The two are only a few steps apart, with the inscriptions “Sun Spring” and “Moon Spring” carved into the rock dating from the Daoguang era of the Qing Dynasty.

Further Reading:

· First Batch of Jiangxi Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units