Weishan

The Weishan Yi and Hui Autonomous County is located in the south of the Dali Bai Autonomous Region in the west of Yunnan Province. Lying in the upper section of Ailao Mountain and Wuliang Mountain, Weishan is more than 54 kilometers from Kunming, the provincial capital of Yunnan, and 54 kilometers from Dali City, the seat of the prefectural government. It has under its jurisdiction nine villages, two towns and 82 village offices.

Weishan has a long history and numerous historic sites and scenic spots. Sixteen sites of the Neolithic Era have been discovered in Weishan. The county has preserved more than 2,100 cultural relics in museums at different levels, and boasts 30 plus cultural relics sites under province, prefecture and county level protection. Since the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the place has turned out more than 20 successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations, and over 200 successful candidates in the provincial level imperial examinations, who left many precious calligraphic works here. In the reign of Emperor Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), Weishan was conferred the title of Famous State of Literature by the emperor.

Weishan has numerous historic sites and special scenery. The ancient county, built in the 23rd year of the Hongwu reign in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), has ancient buildings here and there, among which the symbolic one is the magnificent Hongchen Building.

Weibao Mountain, one of the fourteen famous Taoist mountains in China, features enchanting scenery and refined ancient architecture, and has been proclaimed as a key cultural relics site under the provincial protection. The fourth renowned Taoist temple in China stands on Weibao Mountain. In the county, there are the Xuanzhu Taoist Temple, the Yuanjue Temple, the Yunyin Temple, the Shihe Nunnery, Longyu Mountain, Wuyin Mountain, the Sanhe Cave, the Guifeng Temple, and the Mosque, etc. Therefore, Weishan was proclaimed as one of the key counties of religious work in Yunnan Province. Taoism, Buddhism, Islam, Catholicism and primitive religion all enjoy a long history here, and there are altogether 104 Taoist temples, 85 Buddhist temples, 22 mosques and 78 temples of primitive religion in the county.

Weishan is a place inhabited by ethnic minorities and takes on dense ethic folk art of primitive simplicity. The Dage collective dance of the Yi ethnic minority is very elegant accompanied by a kind of a reed pipe wind instrument that makes sound pleasant to listen to. The Firebrand Festival is a festive day after a bumper harvest.

The area of Weishan abounds in natural resources, and you can find some virgin forest within the border. The county is also a famous hometown of overseas Chinese, with more than 1,400 Chinese sojourning in different countries in Europe, America and the Asia-Pacific Region.

In 1988, the State Council proclaimed Weishan an open county, and listed it a Dali scenic area at the national level. In 1992, the Ministry of Forestry approved Weibao Mountain to be a national level forest park. In 1994, the ancient Weishan City was listed as a historical and cultural city of China. With colorful scenery, Weishan is indeed a good place for travel, sightseeing, holidaymaking, vacation and archeological study.