Cangzhou City, Hebei Province is also called the Lion City, because there is a lion with a history of 1,000 years. This iron lion weighs 32 tons, simple and heavy. It is the city image of Cangzhou and a national historical relic.
This is called. Zhenhai? Although these antiquities have been weathered for thousands of years, they are safe and sound. Unfortunately, it was finally ruined by a group of experts' stupid protection suggestions.
Manjusri Bodhisattva Mountain
The Iron Lion is located in front of Kaiyuan Temple in the southeast suburb of Cangzhou City, Hebei Province. According to textual research, this sculpture was cast in 953 AD, that is, three years after Guang Shun's rule, 1067. The lion is made of iron, with a total length of more than 6 meters, a height of more than 5 meters and a width of nearly 3 meters. Such a huge volume, its weight reached 32 tons. Among the existing iron lions in China, Cangzhou Iron Lion is the largest and oldest.
From the appearance, Cangzhou Iron Lion is magnificent, lifelike and daunting. Iron lion body facing south, head held high, body to southwest, eyes wide open, feet forward, as if roaring in the air, commanding.
The head and neck of an iron lion? The lion king? There is a huge basin on its back, which is actually a lotus throne. The lotus basin is small at the bottom and big at the top, with a diameter of two meters at the widest point, which means that the machine buckle can be completely removed. The lion king in Buddhist stories? It is the mount of Manjusri Bodhisattva and the Manjusri Bodhisattva enshrined in Kaiyuan Temple. Based on all kinds of evidence, experts believe that this iron lion carrying a lotus mount is expecting the arrival of Manjusri Bodhisattva.
Although the shape of the iron lion is huge, on closer inspection, its details are unambiguous, and each part is extremely exquisite, showing the ingenuity of the builder. The lion's hair is wavy and long, and it hangs down to the neck. The lion's chest and buttocks have streamers, which are very realistic. There are many inscriptions on the lion, which record the casting age of the lion, as well as the names of the foundry and fund-raiser.
In addition to the words on the lion, there are also scriptures all over the lion's abdomen, all of which are cast with official scripts. After textual research, the content of the book is the famous Diamond Sutra, which has high calligraphy and archaeological value.
It is almost impossible to build such a huge sculpture under ancient conditions. But the wisdom of craftsmen is immeasurable. After some textual research, it was found that they used the block casting method. The iron blocks with a width of about 40 cm are stacked together, poured layer by layer and piled up one by one, completing the outline of this behemoth. After that, the skillful craftsman carved the details of the lion, and finally handed over this huge and exquisite iron lion.
Heavyweight Zhenhai beast
Cangzhou Iron Lion has another name besides the mount of Manjusri Bodhisattva? Zhenhai? Some people say that it is actually a Zhenhai beast.
Cangzhou area is close to the seaside, where tsunamis and floods often occur, and the surrounding people suffer greatly. The ancients believed in the saying that everything has its vanquisher. They think that human power can't fight the flood, but there is always something else that can subdue it. Some people think of lions.
In pre-Qin literature, the lion was also called "Sister-in-law" and was a powerful beast. According to the records of the Han Dynasty, sister-in-law traveled hundreds of miles every day to subdue tigers and leopards. However, there are few lions in China. At that time, the lion was a tribute to China from the Western Regions, and ordinary people could see it. Therefore, in the eyes of ordinary people, the lion is a powerful beast.
The local people spontaneously raised funds and hired skilled craftsmen to pour this mighty iron lion. It stood in Kaiyuan Temple, facing south, and was submerged by the tsunami, hence its name? Zhenhai? .
Rain or shine, lying on the ground for 90 years.
Since its completion, Cangzhou Iron Lion has been standing safely in Cangzhou City. After thousands of years of wind and rain, it is still as stable as Mount Tai and safe and sound. With the change of time, in the blink of an eye,1at the beginning of the 9 th century, this iron lion began to become troubled. Among them, there are natural disasters and man-made disasters.
1803, a storm happened in Cangzhou. Under the fierce wind and rain, the iron lion that stood for thousands of years fell down because of the strong wind. The lion's body is too big, weighing 32 tons. With the manpower and technology at that time, it was impossible to lift the iron lion. Moreover, in the eyes of people at that time, the iron lion represented sacredness, and ordinary people dared not approach it easily for fear of disrespect to the gods.
In this way, the iron lion has never been lifted. It lay on the ground for 90 years until 1893. With the progress of technology and respect for cultural relics, the iron lion, who had been sleeping for 90 years, finally stood up again under the leadership of relevant personnel. Due to long-term contact with the ground, wind erosion and rain erosion, the iron lion's abdomen and tail have rusted, which is the first disaster on the iron lion.
But in any case, it's just a skin injury, and it can defend Cangzhou City as effectively as before.
Protect or destroy?
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the state attached great importance to cultural relics, especially such an iron lion with a history of nearly a thousand years, which quickly attracted the attention of Cangzhou City. After being concerned, the iron lion began to be quilted? Protection? The fate of, also began to be destroyed.
The iron lion once fell because of the wind and rain. After consulting relevant experts in the Soviet Union, they suggested building a pavilion for the iron lion to shelter from the wind and rain. After the pavilion was completed, the once mighty iron lion seemed to be shrouded in square inches, and its heroic spirit was covered up. More seriously, the completion of the pavilion aggravated the corrosion of the iron lion. In a semi-closed environment, the water on the lion can't evaporate, and it will soon rust and become a rusty lion.
1972, the pavilion was finally demolished and the iron lion returned to the open air. However, in order to make the iron lion more beautiful as a whole, the local cultural relics bureau built a new pedestal at 1984 and made great efforts to move the huge iron lion to the pedestal. In order to be more stable, they also poured a lot of cement into the iron lion's leg.
Originally, it was to make the iron lion icing on the cake, but I didn't expect the Cultural Relics Bureau to be self-defeating. This perfusion caused a lot of water in the iron lion. A few years later, the iron lion's leg cracked because of rust.
Frightened, the Cultural Relics Bureau decided to repair the iron lion's feet and install steel pipe brackets outside the iron lion for protection. This repair caused great damage to the surface of the iron lion. Also, once? Zhenhai? Majestic, protecting the people, but now it is carefully protected, and the charm of the iron lion has disappeared.
The Millennium wind and frost did not destroy the iron lion, but the self-righteous protection destroyed the iron lion. It is necessary to attach importance to and protect cultural relics, but it is better to do nothing if we are not fully sure.
Later, a new iron lion was cast in Cangzhou, which was 1.5 times larger than the original size. Although the volume and weight of the new iron lion can be infinitely expanded, the precipitation of the Millennium history cannot be realized by pouring.