Fishing Town Ruins

　　The 2017 Fishing Town Tourism Festival will kick off on September 8 and run for five days, featuring a variety of activities including the Fishing Town Mountain Climbing Invitational, Jialing River Fishing Competition, Chinese Dragon Boat Race, Buddhist prayers, and a Starry Sky Camping Country Music Festival. To attract more visitors to experience the charm of Fishing Town, the Fishing Town Scenic Area and the Erfo Temple in Laifeng Ancient Town will offer free admission during the festival period.

　　The Fishing Town Scenic Area is open daily from 8:30 to 17:00, while the Laifeng Erfo Temple Scenic Area is open daily from 8:00 to 17:30. Visitors can collect free admission tickets at the Banbian Street Visitor Center or Qishengmen Parking Lot in Fishing Town, or at the main gate or Visitor Reception Center of Erfo Temple in Laifeng Ancient Town by presenting their ID cards.

　　Additionally, to ensure orderly tourism, and based on the scenic areas’ maximum daily capacity, the Fishing Town Scenic Area will distribute 10,000 free tickets per day, while the Erfo Temple in Laifeng Ancient Town will distribute 3,000. Tickets are limited, one per person, and will be given out on a first-come, first-served basis until supplies run out.

　　The Fishing Town Ruins are located in Hechuan City, Sichuan Province in western China, and consist of a military fortress and ancient battlefield site dating back to the Southern Song Dynasty (1127–1279 AD).

　　Construction of Fishing Town began in the second year of the Chunyou era of the Southern Song Dynasty (1242 AD). The site lies about 400 meters from the Jialing River and has a perimeter of over 20 kilometers. Existing structures include city walls, seven city gates, the Imperial City, Imperial Well, Wu Chao Gate, Marshal’s Office, Water Pavilion, Watchtowers, Artillery Platforms, Parade Ground, Command Platform, Tianchi (Heavenly Pool), Chaqi Mountain, prison, Yizi City (Arrow-straight City), Navy Dock, and more. Within the site, there are also stone carvings such as a reclining Buddha and Thousand Buddha Cliff from the late Tang and early Song periods, plus numerous cliff inscriptions from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. In addition, the Zhongyi Shrine and Huguo Temple within the town preserve 16 stone steles from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing eras.

　　The discovery of the Fishing Town Ruins is of great significance for the study of politics, military affairs, architecture, and other aspects of the Song and Yuan periods. (National Cultural Heritage Administration)