Stone Bell Hill (Shizhong Shan)-----a Mystery in Jiujiang

Located in Shuangzhong Town, Jiujiang City in Jiangxi Province, with a height of 50-metre (165-foot), Stone Bell Hill is visited by tourists for centuries. The hill overlooks the lake and the Yangtze River, and the meeting of the waters is clearly defined by an abrupt color change. The hill is famous for the bell-like sound, which is kept to be a mystery. The famous poet Su Shi in Tang Dynasty has made three special trips to try to solve the mystery, he thought that he settled on the last explanation and wrote an essay on the subject.

Stone Bell Hill has a quite long history. It was mentioned as a rare geographical phenomenon by Li Daoyuan (a geographer) in historical records of the Northern Wei Period (386 - 534). As for the rare phenomenon, Li wrote that when the waves splashed on the hill, a quite loud sound just like bells rang was then produced, and this is how the name came into being. When it came to the Northern Song Dynasty (1127 - 1279), Su Shi, who was a famous litterateur of that time, conducted research about it. He found that the under the hill were numerous caves and stone gaps. It was because of those caves and holes that enabled the bell sound be created. He recorded the truth in his literal work-Shizhongshan Ji (Notes of Stone Bell Hill). As the work passed down through time, the hill has gained much more fame.

With a constant stream of visitors from different places for thousands of years, the Stone Bell Hill is famous for its singular prospects, a holy place for Confucian intellectuals, and a place of great strategic importance. As on one side of the hill is the Poyang Lake which is green, and on the other side is the Yangtze River which is yellow, the hill presents people with a kaleidoscopic view with changes in color. Many literary giants of ancient China have left more than 20 calligraphy masterpieces carved upon the stone. Some of the most precious works date as far back as the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907). As a place of strategic importance, many historical events and battles occurred here, including the war between Zhu Yuanzhang (first emperor of the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644)) and Chen Youliang, (a general of the late Yuan Dynasty (1271 - 1368)), and the ten-year war fought between Zeng Guofan (a famous general of the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911)), and Shi Dakai (a general of the Taiping Army).

The most mysterious and the most attractive thing about the hill is the sound visitors can hear on the mountain. The legend tells why it is so called, however, it cannot really explain the strange bell-like sound that can be heard. There are three generally accepted theories to explain this. The first one is that the hill is comprised of limestone; and fissures formed through water erosion. When water flows through these fissures, the sound occurs. The second is that when striking the stone chimes, stalagmite and the stone pillar on this hill, people could hear that kind of strange sound. The third one is that when water seeps into the limestone cave at the base of the hill, this generates the sound.

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