Carvings on Conggu Mountain

Carvings on Conggu Mountain

The carvings on Conggu Mountain are a cultural relic protection unit of Nancheng County.

Located five kilometers southeast of Nancheng County, Conggu Mountain stands erect by the river, majestic in presence. The entire mountain range is composed of interconnected rocky structures. Conggu Mountain is divided into two peaks: the eastern peak, known as “Flying Turtle Peak,” and the western peak, called “Heavenly Pillar Peak.” Between the two peaks lies a naturally formed slit known as “Congshi Sky Light,” also dubbed “One-Line Sky,” with a sky bridge built across it, approximately two meters long and one meter wide, connecting the two peaks.

In the 24th year of the Jiajing reign during the Ming Dynasty (1545), the philosopher Luo Rufang established the “Conggu Mountain Study” here to host scholars from all over who came to give lectures together. The great Ming Dynasty playwright Tang Xianzu once studied here.

In ancient times, Conggu Mountain was a gathering place for literati. According to the “Annex to Conggu Mountain” in Volume Twelve of the “Mountain Chronicles,” as many as forty-three inscriptions were created here. To this day, phrases such as “Flying Turtle Peak,” “Heart-Cleansing Pool,” “Jade-Like Uprightness,” and “Looking Up to Lofty Mountains” remain engraved on the cliffs. Notably, the three characters “Flying Turtle Peak” inscribed by Luo Rufang are strikingly prominent, their brushwork so powerful that they seem beyond human capability. The Conggu Mountain carvings were listed as a key county-level cultural relic protection unit in 1983.