Stone Carvings in the Chaoyang Cave of Tao Mountain

Stone Carvings in the Chaoyang Cave of Tao Mountain

The stone carvings in the Chaoyang Cave of Tao Mountain are a national key cultural relics protection unit.

The stone carvings in the Chaoyang Cave of Tao Mountain are located inside the Chaoyang Cave on the cliffs northwest of the main peak of Tao Mountain in Hucun Town, Feicheng City. These cliff inscriptions date from the Song Dynasty to the Republican era and were designated as part of the fourth batch of provincial-level key cultural relics protection units in 2013. The Chaoyang Cave is located on the cliffs on this side of Tao Mountain and is a limestone karst cave formed by ancient crustal movements. It is called Chaoyang (Facing the Sun) Cave because its entrance faces south. Due to the cave’s coolness in summer and warmth in winter, visitors find it a pleasant and comfortable place, and during the Song Dynasty it was also known as the “Delightful Cave.” In the 22nd year of the Jiaqing reign (1817), it was officially named Chaoyang Cave. Among the seventy-two caves of Tao Mountain, the Chaoyang Cave is one of the larger ones and also has the most carvings on its walls. The cave is divided into three sections: the front cave, middle cave, and upper cave. The front and middle caves are both 8 meters high and 8 meters wide, with 24 Buddha statues carved on the eastern wall. Ascending the steps leads to the upper cave, which is 8 meters deep, 15 meters wide, and 30 meters high. On the northern and western walls of the upper cave are 34 statues, with the central figure being the Tathagata Buddha, flanked by the Eighteen Arhats, Samantabhadra, and Manjushri on the left, and Guanyin Bodhisattva on the right. Research indicates that the Buddha statues in the cave were carved in successive dynasties since the Northern Wei period. There are also two unfathomable bottomless pits within the cave. Additionally, the cave originally housed a shrine dedicated to the founders of the Three Teachings (Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism), which was destroyed in the 1960s. In 1994, the statues were restored, representing Laozi of Taoism, Confucius of Confucianism, and the Tathagata Buddha of Buddhism. The Buddha statues and stone carvings are well preserved. On the upper left wall of the cave are four large characters “Three Teachings’ Origin” (三教渊源) carved in the first year of the Xuantong reign (1909).

Hucun Town: "Hucun Town is located at the western foot of Mount Tai, the foremost of China’s Five Great Mountains. To the east is the High-Tech Zone of Feicheng City, to the west is Shiheng Town, to the south is Taoyuan Town, and to the north it borders Pingyin and Changqing. The town comprises 48 administrative villages (communities), with 12,000 households and a total population of 82,000. It covers an area of 86 square kilometers. Within its jurisdiction, there are five large and medium-sized state-owned and local coal mines. The town has been recognized as a Shandong Province Model Town for New Rural Construction, a Shandong Province Beautiful Environment Town, an Advanced Unit in Safe Construction in Shandong Province, an Economic Powerhouse Town in Tai’an City, a Civilized Well-Off Town, and an Advanced Town in Spiritual Civilization Construction."

In recent years, … More details about Hucun Town ++

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Eighth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units