Black Oil Mountain

　　where crude oil has been continuously oozing out for years, forming a cluster of asphalt mounds. The largest of these stands 13 meters high and covers an area of 0.2 square kilometers. The oil found here is a rare low-pour-point type. The name “Karamay” in Uyghur means “black oil,” hence the name Black Oil Mountain for this natural asphalt mound. This black asphalt mountain, along with the petroleum buried beneath it, has lain dormant here for hundreds of millions of years. Due to crustal movements, underground oil has been forced to the surface through rock fissures under pressure. The lighter components of the oil have evaporated over time, leaving behind the thicker residue that has solidified with sand and soil to form the Black Oil Mountain. To promote the spirit of hard work and pioneering endeavor, the Xinjiang Petroleum Administration and the Karamay municipal government erected a nearly three-meter-high stone monument and a statue of an elderly Uyghur man riding a donkey while playing a rawap (a traditional stringed instrument) on October 1, 1982. Today, Black Oil Mountain serves as both a memorial site for revolutionary tradition education and a popular tourist attraction. At the southern foot of the mountain lies a park covering an area of 130,000 square meters, centered around Tuohu Lake, which has a water surface of 196,000 square meters. Within the lake are two islands: Solitary Island and Foot Island. Solitary Island features a small pavilion, next to which stand three 200-million-year-old petrified pine trees—rare treasures indeed. Foot Island is shaped like a foot. To its north is a Rainbow Bridge, and to its east, a winding bridge connects it to the lakeshore. On the north shore of the Rainbow Bridge stands an artificial hill over 10 meters high.

　　　　Located two kilometers northeast of downtown Karamay, Black Oil Mountain is a Triassic oil seepage site of the Karamay Oilfield. It consists of a cluster of asphalt mounds formed by years of crude oil oozing out, the largest of which stands 13 meters high and covers 0.2 square kilometers. The oil from Black Oil Mountain is a valuable low-pour-point type. According to geologists, the area has been seeping oil since as early as 200 million years ago. Late Qing Dynasty Chinese texts refer to Black Oil Mountain and its surrounding areas as Qingshi Gorge.

　　- Book Records

　　　　<<新疆图志>>,<<清明续文献通考>Books such as these document the oil production in the area: "Qingshi Gorge, where much oil is found," and "The Black Oil Mountain in Qingshi Gorge... currently has nine springs, with the one at the mountaintop being the largest. At its peak, up to two hundred and several dozen jin of oil could be extracted daily." Before liberation, local residents had long collected oil from the site. Even in the early post-liberation years, there was an elderly Uyghur man named Sailimu Bayi who lived in a cellar nearby, collecting crude oil and then transporting it by donkey to nearby areas in exchange for daily necessities.

Black Oil Mountain