Luoyang Fairy Cave

　　Luoyang Fairy Cave. Luoyang Cave is a rock cave located beneath Qianjin Mountain, known for its serene scenery. "The Zishao and Ershui rivers converge beneath it, with winding stone chambers and a mysterious rear cavern whose depths are unknown, while inscriptions on the walls can still be read" (as recorded in the Daoguang-era Baoqing Prefecture Chronicles). Beside the cave lies Luoyang Well, whose water is as clear as a mirror and never dries up even in prolonged droughts. Legend has it that both the cave and the well were named by Tang Dynasty’s Shen Taizhi in memory of his mother back in Luoyang, hence the names “Fairy Cave” and “Fairy Well.” Xie Xing, the magistrate of Baoqing during the Ming Dynasty, wrote the poem “Luoyang Cave”: “With cane in hand I climb to Jiuhua, unsure where the immortal’s home might be. Fallen blossoms drift with fading spring, ancient trees linger in the slanting sunset. Who knows how many years have passed by the elixir cauldron? The cave’s mouth is forever veiled in misty clouds. The immortals departed, leaving no word—only peach blossoms bloom by themselves in spring.” In another poem, the Ming Dynasty official Che Darong wrote, “The gate connects to a silent elixir stove, the altar level with the white clouds,” indicating that by the Ming Dynasty, remnants such as cauldrons and altars used by immortals for alchemy could still be found at the cave entrance.