wushan

most yangtze river itineraries will include the cruise on daningriver through the three little gorges. it is the main reason for making a stop at wushan. it is situated on the north bank of the yangtze and embraced by lovely mountain peaks.

wushan - one of the original places of primitive civilization - has existed since the latter part of the shang dynasty (c.1600 - 1027 bc). in the warring states period, (475 - 221 b.c.) wu prefecture was established here by the king of chu. during the first century, the faith of the buddha has reached china and many temples were built here; almost all the temples have been destroyed over the years. in han dynasty, agriculture and manufacture industry flourished here. the name of the town originates with wu xian, a successful tang-dynasty doctor to the imperial court, who was buried on nanlingmountain, on the south bank opposite wushan. during qing dynasty, swarms of refugees poured into the town due to the war.

what to see

the most magnificent visit is to climb to the summit of wushan (witches hill). from the summit the views of wu gorge and the river are spectacular. and luyou dong, which name after an official of the song dynasty has usually teahouses and ornamental pavilions.

daningriver excursion - three little gorges

this breathtakingly beautiful area has only been open to foreign tourism since 1985 and for this reason it remains largely unspoiled. a day trip up the crystal-clear daningriver through its magnificent three little gorges (xiao sanxia) - whose total length is only 33 kilometers (20 mile) - is to experience the excitement and awe of bygone days of river travel in china.

culture heritage

nearby wushan county seat, large amounts of excavations show the fossils of wushan ape man, which appeared about 2 million years ago. wushan ape man has distinguished difference from peking ape man (excavated in beijing) and lantian ape man (excavated in shaanxiprovince). wushan apeman.

another tomb excavation of han dynasty mainly includes gold-plating utensil and pottery vessels.