Situated
majestically at the
southeast of Guilin city
and west bank of Li
River, Elephant Trunk
Hill is regarded as the
symbol of Guilin
landscape. Originally
named "Li Hill", "Yi
Hill" and "Chenshui
Hill", the hill has a
history of 3.6 hundred
million years.
Resembling an elephant
leisurely sucking water
from the river with its
long trunk, this hill is
famous as Elephant Trunk
Hill for hundreds of
years.
With an elevation of
200m, the hill towers
55m above the water,
measuring 108m in length
and 100m in width.
Between the trunk and
the legs of the elephant
is a cave, in the shape
of a full moon,
penetrating the hill
from side to side.
People named it
"Moon-over-Water Cave".
When the waters wave and
the moonlight gleams,
the scene is exceedingly
enchanting. On the walls
in and around this cave,
over 70 inscriptions
from the Tang and Song
dynasties were found,
praising the beauty of
hills and waters nearby.
Halfway up the hill lies
another cave, which goes
through the hill and
serves as the eyes of
the elephant, through
which visitors can
overlook the beautiful
scene of Guilin city. On
top of the hill stands a
pagoda named Puxian
Pagoda. Built in the
Ming dynasty
(1368-1644), it looks
like the handle of a
sword. In and out of the
cave are many carvings
and inscriptions, the
most well-known of which
is a poem by Lu You
(1125-1210), one of the
four great poets of the
Southern Song dynasty
(1127-1279). |