Background Age of Cliff Stone Carvings in Kongwangshan Mountain

Some people think that the sculpture dates back to the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty. Some people think that from the perspective of the main body of the statue, it can be considered as a relic of the Eastern Han Dynasty. According to the textual research of Donghai Junmiao Monument (172) in the first year of the Eastern Han Dynasty, which Shi Hong included in Lishi, there are two statues in Donghai Junmiao, one in the auditorium and the other on the altar outside the temple. The era of the cliff statue of Kongwangshan should be around. It has also been suggested that the age of the statue of Kong Wangshan should be "after the Jin and Wei Dynasties and before the Yuan and Wei Dynasties". In addition, some people think that the sculpture era may be as late as the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Liu Song and even the Tang Dynasty.

There are also two different views on the route of Buddhism's introduction into Kongwang Mountain in Lianyungang. On the first day, the Maritime Silk Road, and on the second day, the inland Silk Road leading to the western regions gradually extended eastward.

The statue of Kongwangshan is about 200 years earlier than the earliest Buddhist art in Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes (366). It is the early embryonic form of Buddhist art in China.

All concentrated in the southwest corner of the mountain. It was embossed on the mountain. The whole statue is distributed on the cliff of Huang Chu, with a length of17m and a height of 8m. * * There are more than 100 carved figures, the big ones are similar to real people, and the small ones are only 10 cm. There are standing, sitting, jumping and lying down, with rich images and different expressions. According to experts' appraisal, the statue was excavated in the last year of the Eastern Han Dynasty in A.D. 170, 200 years earlier than the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes built in the second year of Jianyuan (336). It is the earliest Buddhist cliff statue discovered in China so far, and it has been designated as a national key cultural relic protection unit by the State Council.

In the past, it was agreed at home and abroad that Buddhism spread from the west to the east. The discovery of Buddhist cliff statues in Kongwangshan Mountain is no different from the earlier missionary methods in the East, which challenges some conclusions in the history of Buddhism. Zhao Puchu, president of the Buddhist Association of China, saw the rubbings at 198 1 and immediately wrote an inscription for them excitedly: The Maritime Silk Road opened early, and the literature and history proved to be a cliff. Maybe Kong Wangshan's head is a white horse coming out of quicksand.

From 2000 to 2003, a joint archaeological team composed of China History Museum, Nanjing Museum, Lianyungang Museum and Cultural Management conducted a large-scale investigation and excavation of the ancient cultural site of Kongwangshan, including cliff statues. The results further confirm that the Cliff Statue Group is a Buddhist and Taoist statue, and new important discoveries have been made, such as the building base before the statue and related architectural relics, which enriched the profound cultural connotation of Kongwangshan site as a place for early religious worship and activities in China.