Baiheliang

Chongqing Fuling Baiheliang, hailed by UNESCO as the "world's first ancient hydrological station", is the only underwater museum in the world that allows visitors to explore the original site at a depth of 40 meters underwater in the Yangtze River - the Fuling Baiheliang Underwater Museum (a national AAAA level tourist attraction).

The Historical Development of Baiheliang

Baiheliang is located in the middle of the Yangtze River in the north of Fuling District, Chongqing. It is a natural stone beam with a length of 1600 meters and an average width of 15 meters, formerly known as Baziliang. It is submerged in the river water all year round and lies along the river, only appearing on the water surface during the dry seasons of winter and spring. Because in ancient times, there were clusters of white cranes on the beam, spreading their wings and playing, with their necks raised high. In addition, it is said that during the Northern Wei Dynasty, Erzhu Zhenren practiced here and rode on the White Crane Immortal, hence the name White Crane Beam.

In the first year of Guangde in the Tang Dynasty (763 AD), two stone fish were engraved on the lowest water level line of the Yangtze River in Baiheliang to observe the unique water mark of the dry water level of the Yangtze River. At this point, whenever the Yangtze River water withers and the White Crane Ridge stone fish emerges, people judge the degree of water scarcity by observing the distance between the fish eyes and the water surface. As a result, numerous poetic patterns and stone inscriptions have been left on the stone beams, which are extremely important records of ancient hydrological observations. According to scientific measurements, the Wusong elevation of the white crane beam stone fish eye is 137.91 meters, which is on the same horizontal line as the local water level zero point. This is a miracle in the history of world water levels. Due to the varying levels of water scarcity and abundance in the river each year, the stone fish carved by our ancestors did not always emerge from the water surface. Through continuous observation, our ancestors discovered that the year after the stone fish emerged was often a year of abundant harvest. As a result, they gradually summarized the agricultural harvest law of "the emergence of stone fish indicates a bountiful year". It has significant historical value for studying the low water laws, shipping, and production in the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River.

There are three main reasons why it serves as the best reference point for river water subsidence: firstly, the back elevation of the Baiheliang is 138 meters, which is 2-3 meters higher than the average lowest water level and 30 meters lower than the average highest water level. This means that Baiheliang only appears on the water surface during the dry season from December to March of the following year, and the rest is submerged underwater. Secondly, the area of Baiheliang exposed to the river surface is relatively large, and the surface of the stone beam is relatively flat, leaning towards the north bank of the river at a 14.5 degree angle. It is said to be the largest whole stone beam exposed to the center of the Yangtze River. Thirdly, Baiheliang is arranged along the river flow, close to the shore, not in the center of the river, and will not affect the navigation of ships at the lowest water level.

The scene of the Baihe Liang rising and disappearing, the water drying up and revealing, and the appearance of the four seasons, has formed a unique scenery in the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River, and also aroused the emotional enthusiasm of ancient people. Literati, scholars, officials, merchants, and scholars passing through Fuling, when the Baihe Liang emerges from the water, they will embark on a boat together, stop on the beam, compose poems and essays, and write inscriptions to record events. Up to now, there are 165 inscriptions and more than 30000 words from various dynasties in China since 763 AD (the first year of Guangde in the Tang Dynasty) engraved on the beam, including 18 stone fish, 2 Guanyin statues, and 1 white crane. More than 700 people have left their names, such as the famous writer and calligrapher Huang Tingjian of the Northern Song Dynasty, as well as poetry and prose inscriptions by Zhu Ang, Qin Jiushao, Wang Shizhen, Huang Shou, and others. Not only is the shape of the stone fish lifelike, but the poetry and words are also beautiful and fluent. The engraved calligraphy is extremely precious, with fonts including seal script, clerical script, cursive script, and cursive script. The styles of Yan, Liu, Huang, and Su are presented together, combining the great achievements of calligraphy in the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. There are also shallow relief, deep relief, line carving, lotus patterns, lace, and minority languages, with different styles and splendid displays. With numerous underwater inscriptions, a long history, rich content, and diverse forms, it is an exquisite calligraphy art corridor that can be called a major underwater wonder in the world and is known as the "Underwater Stele Forest".

Protection of Baiheliang

In 1992, the world-renowned Three Gorges Dam project in China was launched. After the completion of the Three Gorges Dam, the normal water level in the reservoir area will be raised to 175 meters, which means that the Baiheliang, located below the submerged water level, will forever sink to the bottom of the river.

In the cultural relics protection project in the Three Gorges Reservoir area of the Yangtze River, the protection of the Baiheliang inscription is the most difficult, technologically advanced, and investment intensive project. In order to protect this underwater treasure, the most basic principle is not to be divorced from the water environment on which it depends, that is, the principle of "original site protection". For this reason, it has demonstrated for ten years and proposed seven protection plans. Finally, the underwater protection project of the White Crane Ridge inscription was approved by the National Cutural Heritage Administration, and adopted the "pressureless container" underwater museum protection plan proposed by Professor Ge Xiurun of Shanghai Jiaotong University, an academician of the CAE Member. Build an arched enclosure on the Baihe Liang, with filtered Yangtze River water inside, to achieve relative balance between the water pressure inside the enclosure and the external Yangtze River water pressure, forming a pressure free container. The container adopts advanced equipment and technology to precipitate, disinfect, and remove sediment from the Yangtze River water using activated carbon, in order to reduce erosion of the inscribed text. At the same time, two corridors will be built from the shore to the underwater, allowing visitors to admire the inscriptions from tens of meters underwater. The preservation of the original site of the White Crane Ridge inscription has been passed down to future generations, and it is also an example of "jointly focusing on great protection and not engaging in great development", allowing the White Crane Ridge, with its clear waters, green mountains on both sides, and millennium beautiful scenery, to shine with new charm and show new charm.

Baiheliang Underwater Museum

On May 18, 2009, after seven years and a total investment of 210 million yuan, the Baiheliang Underwater Museum was completed and opened to the public, becoming the first successful protection and exhibition of similar cultural heritage both domestically and internationally. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has praised it as the world's first underwater museum that is not accessible by diving.

The total construction area of Fuling Baiheliang Underwater Museum is 8433 square meters, consisting of three parts: "Underwater Inscription Protection Body", "Underwater Corridor", and "Ground Exhibition Hall".

The protective cover project of the underwater museum is located directly above the inscription, covering the entire inscription plane in an elliptical shape. There is a visitor access channel outside the underwater protective cover wall. Visitors can enter the underwater protective cover by taking the escalator from the shore through a steel corridor. There are three main ways to visit: through the 22 pressure resistant double-layer viewing windows with a diameter of 80 centimeters in the corridor; Watch on the screen through 28 fully rotating cameras inside the cover. The ground exhibition hall is divided into two floors: the first floor is a reception and functional conversion space, with a consultation reception area, an introduction hall, a tail hall, an underwater visit waiting area, a souvenir sales area, etc. The second floor is an exhibition space, divided into four units: "Water - Hydrological Observations in World River Civilization", "Ruler - Scientific Value of White Crane Ridge Inscriptions", "Poetry - Humanistic Value of White Crane Ridge Inscriptions", and "Museum - World's First Underwater Inscription Museum".

From the world's first ancient hydrological station to the world's first underwater museum, the Baiheliang Underwater Museum not only maintains the overall appearance of the Baiheliang hydrological inscriptions, but also preserves the original environment of the cultural relics. It is a perfect combination of ancient civilization and modern technology, reflecting the latest concept of underwater cultural relic protection for humanity, demonstrating China's respect for historical and cultural heritage, and its determination in cultural heritage protection. It is not only a model for the protection of cultural relics in the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River, but also provides a model for the protection of similar cultural heritage sites in the world.

Double Carp Stone Fish Water Label Scenic Spot

In the underwater gallery of the Baiheliang Underwater Museum in Fuling, through the glass of the gallery, one can clearly observe two stone fish and an ancient poem written by Liu Zhongshun in the Song Dynasty - "Inscribed on the stone fish in Fuzhou: engraved on the bottom of seventy-two scales, one holding grass and one holding lotus. When they come out, they are not greedy for fragrant bait, but report to each other to repay the New Year. Fang Ke writes and his disciples are content with themselves, and the shepherd's dreams are in harmony. I have seen it frequently in Shangruiyi, and the emperor remembers the people's hunger and urges the wise

Huang Shou's Poem Inscription Scenic Spot

In the year 1510 AD, during the reign of Emperor Zhengde of the Ming Dynasty, the Prefect of Fuling, Huang Shouguan, inscribed a five character regulated poem on a stone fish. This poem objectively views the legend of "a stone fish emerging from water heralds a bountiful year" with dialectical thinking, and embodies the "people-oriented" idea of frugality and love for the people.

Wu Ge's Inscription on Scenic Spots

The inscription of Wu Ge was carved in the fourth year of Xuanhe in the Northern Song Dynasty (1122 AD). Wu Ge (1095-1146 AD), also known as Yifu, was born in Huayang (now Shuangliu, Sichuan). The inscription has a strong and steady Yan style.

[Huang Tingjian's Inscription on Scenic Spots]

The phrase 'Yuan Fu Geng Chen Fu Weng Lai' was engraved in the third year of the Yuanfu era of the Northern Song Dynasty (1100 AD). During the reign of Emperor Zhezong of Song Dynasty, he was summoned as a school scribe and a censor for the "Shenzong Shilu". At the beginning of Shao Shengchu's reign, the New Party accused him of "many false accusations" in his history writing and demoted him to Guizhou (now Pengshui, Chongqing) for resettlement. In the third year of Yuanfu (also known as Gengchen), Emperor Huizong ascended the throne. At the age of 56, Huang Tingjian was pardoned and returned to the east, leaving behind this inscription. His poetry is based on Du Fu, emphasizing rhetoric and sentence construction, emphasizing that 'there is no place without a word', and mostly depicting personal daily life. In this inscription, the word "lai" is divided into two parts, with the top part being "go" and the bottom part being "no", in order to express his inner emotions using the word "lai". It seems that he is using the word "lai" to say to the emperor, "Are you asking me not to go, not to come, not to go up, not to go down.

Sunhai's "Baiheliang" Scenic Spot

The Qing Tongzhi edition of the "Revised Gazetteer of Fuzhou" annotated under the entry of Baiheliang: "Erzhu Zhenren floated down the river, and fishermen who had white stones lifted their nets to catch them. They woke up by striking the bell, and then practiced in front of the beam. Later, they rode on the White Crane Immortal to go, hence the name." The three characters "Baiheliang" were directly engraved on the stone beam by the three large characters "Sunhai" from the Xinsi period of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty. The structure was dignified, containing a sense of freedom, and the momentum was vertical and horizontal. It not only gave people a sense of calmness and vigor, but also a sense of harmony and elegance.

Wu Zhen's Inscription on Scenic Spots

Engraved in the first year of Yuanyou in the Northern Song Dynasty (1086 AD). This inscription is a typical low water level inscription on the Baihe Liang. In the ninth year of the Yuanfeng reign of the Northern Song Dynasty (1086 AD), Zheng Di, the governor of Fuzhou, and Shi Liang, a judge, observed the stone fish. At that time, the river water was five feet below the fish, and the Wusong base was 137.46m. According to historical records, Emperor Shenzong of the Northern Song Dynasty had only eight years of Yuanfeng, and the inscription "Yuanfeng Nine Years" in this section is actually the first year of Yuanyou by Emperor Zhezong of Song Dynasty. Due to inconvenient transportation at that time, the imperial edict to change the Yuan Dynasty could not arrive in Fuzhou, Sichuan in time. Therefore, the author still used the Yuanfeng chronology, which was the first year of Yuanyou.

Pang Gongsun and other scenic spots

In the first year of the Daguan reign of the Northern Song Dynasty, in 1107 AD, the Yangtze River experienced its third major drought in recorded history, with fish falling seven feet from the water. The inscription also retells the historical facts recorded during the Guangde and Dahe periods of the Tang Dynasty. This inscription was added by Pang Gongsun, the military governor of Fuzhou, in the second year of the Daguan reign, after verifying that "the appearance of stone fish indicates a bountiful year." Han Ao, a successful candidate in the imperial examination, also added the inscription and published it.

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