Cover news reporter Zeng Jie Dai Zhuxin Ya'an reported
According to the Ya'an Municipal Bureau of Culture, Sports and Tourism
In 53 BC, Wu Lizhen, a native of Ya'an, Sichuan, pioneered artificial tea cultivation in Mengding Mountain, and was revered as the "ancestor of tea planting", and tea was also widely spread, benefiting Cangsheng. More than 2,000 years later, people planted tea and drank tea in Mengding Mountain, and couldn't help but wonder, how does the history of tea cultivation in Mengding Mountain continue to this day? What are the tea-related remains here? How will Mengdingshan play the tea culture card well in the future?
On March 26th, the "China Mengding Mountain, the Source of World Tea" - Academic Seminar on Tea History and Tea Industry Heritage, jointly sponsored by The Sichuan Provincial Bureau of Cultural Heritage and the Ya'an Municipal People's Government, was held in Mengding Mountain. Experts and scholars from all over the country in the fields of tea history and archaeology, protection and utilization of tea industry heritage, tea planting and circulation gathered together to brainstorm the origin of world tea, the study of Chinese tea history, the spread and development of tea, and the protection and utilization of tea heritage.
At the seminar, 36 experts, including Professor Sun Hua of the School of Archaeology and Literature of Peking University, Liu Zhonghua, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and Professor of Hunan Agricultural University, Tan Jihe, President of the Sichuan Historical Society, Huo Wei, Professor of Sichuan University, Sun Qian, Honorary President of the World Tea Culture Exchange Association, and Duan Yu, Vice President of the China Pre-Qin History Society, participated in the discussion in the form of online video connection and offline keynote speech. The participating experts jointly issued the Ya'an initiative of the "China Mengding mountain , the source of world tea" - the academic seminar on tea history and tea industry heritage, calling for the protection and utilization of these precious cultural heritages and laying a good foundation for Mengdingshan to declare the world cultural heritage.
Participating experts jointly launched an initiative
An important birthplace of tea culture in the world
"If Lu Yu is taught to hold a public opinion, it should be the first tea in the world." "Shu soil tea is called holy, and the taste of Mengshan is unique." ...... Among the famous sentences of the literati in the past generations of inkers who chanted the tea industry, there are many popular people who praise Mengding camellia.
At the Tiangai Temple in the Mengding Mountain Scenic Area, there is a stele of "The Great Mengshan Under the Heavens", which records the story of Wu Lizhen's tea planting. The stele was erected in the sixth year of Qing Yongzheng (1728), and the inscription reads: "Ancestor Wu surname, legal name Li Zhen, is the Western Han Yan Dao, that is, the people of present Ya." Hair loss five tops, open to build Mengshan Mountain. From the ridge table, with the seeds of lingming, planted in the five peaks..." The stone stele has been preserved to this day, confirming that Mengding Mountain is the earliest place on the mainland where there are written records of artificial tea cultivation.
From 742 AD to the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, Mengding Camellia was used as a tribute tea to the imperial court, spanning 1169 years. In the Song Dynasty, the official government set up a special tea horse division to be in charge of the affairs of tea and horses, and Mengshan tea always occupied a dominant position in the tea and horse market.
In addition, Mengding Mountain is also one of the birthplaces of tea culture. From the earliest artificial tea plantation in the Western Han Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty being listed as a tribute tea and continuing until the Qing Dynasty, Mengding Camellia has a long history, known as "Xiancha", and Mengding mountain is also known as "Xiancha Hometown".
Tea Garden Greenway
The rich heritage of the tea industry has been preserved to this day
As early as 2013, the Tea Horse Ancient Road was listed by the State Council as the seventh batch of national key cultural relics protection units, and the mengdingshan ancient building complex of the provincial cultural relics protection unit is also an important part of the heritage of Ya'an tea industry. The remains of the ya'an section of the Tea Horse Ancient Road are clear and easy to follow, and some sections are still in use today, and there are many ancient buildings, ancient towns and ancient villages along the way. At the same time, the ancient road along the mountain stretch, the river longitudinal, the natural landscape is unique, the ancient road on the stone carved stele pavilion, rich content of the inscription, from different ages, different angles recorded the history of tea road tea, great scientific research and development and utilization value.
Sun Hua once conducted a survey of the cultural heritage of the tea industry in the Mengdingshan area. According to him, from the foothills of Mengding Mountain to the top of the mountain, the ancients built a stone panshan ancient road, which is scattered along the ancient road with cultural relics and monuments such as Zhiju Temple, Jingju'an Temple, Tiangai Temple, Imperial Tea Garden and Ganlu Stone Room. There are also branches that connect to Yongxing Temple to the west, and together with the related ancient tea gardens nearby, they form the Mengding Camellia Cultural Heritage System. Among them, Zhizhi Temple, Yongxing Temple, and Tiangai Temple are shining pearls.
Zhizhi Temple is said to have been founded by Wu Lizhen, the ancestor of Ganlu, and the temple was added and rebuilt during the Ming Dynasty, and the existing Jingju'an Stone Fang is a remnant of this period. The Qing Dynasty temple of Zhizhi Temple is also basically preserved. Since the Song Dynasty, mengding has presided over the annual tea harvesting of zhizhi temple. In modern times, there are still tea factories producing tea here, and a stone monument of "Imperial Tea House" has been erected on the side of the road.
Yongxing Temple is located on the gentle slope of the mountainside on the west side of Mengding, the building is well preserved, surrounded by tea gardens, and there is still the custom of picking tea and making tea. Due to its complete preservation, Yongxing Temple has become a national key cultural relics protection unit.
The Tiangai Temple, located at the top of Mengding Mountain, may have been built in the Tang Dynasty, and the existing temple is a remnant of the Qing Dynasty. There are many inscriptions in the temple, of which "The Great Mengding Mountain under the Heavens" is the most famous.
Sun Hua believes that in view of the important position of Mengding Mountain and its surrounding areas in the history of Chinese tea, and the fact that Mengding Mountain has preserved many cultural relics and monuments related to the tea industry, it is entirely necessary to conduct a comprehensive investigation and record of the existing tea heritage of Mengding Mountain, and to conduct special and comprehensive research on the heritage of Mengding Mountain and the history of Mengding Mountain tea.
Montyned Mountain
Initiative to declare a World Heritage Site
Does Mengding Mountain have the conditions to be declared a World Cultural Heritage? Experts at the meeting believe that it is timely.
The Ya'an section of the Tea Horse Ancient Road has a thick history, multiple overlapping roads, and the diversity and inclusiveness of national cultures are very distinct. Mengdingshan Ancient Architectural Complex is a well-preserved architectural complex in our province that integrates tea culture, Buddhist culture and sacrifice culture, which embodies the architectural and artistic achievements of secular and religious architecture in the Ming and Qing dynasties, and reflects the profound cultural heritage. The heritage of the Ya'an tea industry is diverse and well preserved, with high historical, artistic and scientific value. The ancient building complex of Mengding Mountain is inspired by tea, which is the crystallization of Ming and Qing dynasty architecture, and it is also a precious relic of studying tea history and tea culture. In addition, the traditional production technique of Mengshan tea has also been selected as a national intangible cultural heritage project.
Participating experts jointly proposed to strengthen the study of Chinese tea history, sort out its development and evolution, explore the status and role of the Bashu region in the origin and development of China's tea industry, and promote the in-depth research on the origin of tea, the history of the tea industry, the archaeology of the tea industry, the cultural landscape of tea, and the protection of tea heritage.
Mengding Mountain in Ya'an Mingshan District is the center of the early tea producing areas of Bashu and is recognized by the industry as an important birthplace of the world tea industry and tea culture. The initiative continues to carry out in-depth discussions on the history of Mengshan tea in Bashu, the mutual market between Mengshan and Tea and Horse, the relationship between the Ancient Tea Horse Road, and the value of mengding camellia cultural landscape, laying the foundation for the study of the world tea culture landscape and the declaration of tea culture landscapes including Mengding Mountain as world cultural heritage.
Mengding Mountain has many cultural relics of the tea industry, and the preservation status and display foundation are good. It is proposed to increase the protection of ancient tea gardens, ancient buildings, ancient stone carvings and ancient roads and other cultural heritage of Mengding Mountain, scientific planning, precise policy, under the premise of protecting and managing the heritage of the tea industry and its environment, make good use of the precious heritage of Mengding Mountain, nourish tourism with tea culture, transform more tea cultural resources and elements into tourism products, and further promote the characteristic, high-quality and efficiency development of Ya'an and Sichuan tourism.