Sword-Yard Stone Carvings

Sword-Yard Stone Carvings

　　Sword-Yard stone carvings have a long history and are deeply influenced by the Shizhongshan Grottoes. Some of the more famous carvings include the Yuan Dynasty works “Evil Warding,” “Buddha Mother,” the Ming Dynasty “Statue Pedestal of Su Yong’an,” and “The Imperial Scholar’s Procession,” as well as stone carvings of horses, sheep, tigers, qilins, and figures from the tombs of Duan Gaoxuan and Yang Hui. The most numerous and vivid are the stone lions used for decorating temples and tombs and other architectural structures. Just at the Zhongke Mountain ancient tomb site alone, there are thousands of stone lions carved since the Ming and Qing dynasties, each in unique poses and styles. There are standing lions, lying lions, crouching lions, and rearing lions; sleeping lions, awake lions, drunk lions; male lions, female lions, and cub lions; thin lions, fat lions; smiling lions, angry lions, roaring lions... Folk stone carvings are also used to decorate the wall bases, stair platforms, and flower stands of buildings, featuring patterns of flowers, birds, insects, and fish.