The origin of "Xiuyan"

Xiuyan Manchu Autonomous County is affiliated to Anshan City, Liaoning Province. It is located in the northern part of the Liaodong Peninsula, with a total area of ??4,507 square kilometers and a total population of 500,000. The Manchu population accounts for the total population of the county. "Divided into fields, half divided into roads and half manors," the mountainous coastal county is also the frontier of the opening up of the three eastern provinces. Its unique geographical advantages and natural resources are well-known at home and abroad. There are 42 kinds of mineral deposits with proven reserves, including magnesite and jade. , marble, talc, granite, and silica are abundant in quantity and good in quality, and enjoy the reputation of Xiuyan's "six gems". The total reserves of magnesite are 1.1 billion tons, with a magnesium content of 47%. The reserves rank second in the world and the quality ranks first in the country. Xiuyan jade reserves and quality rank first in the country, and enjoys the reputation of China's national stone. Xiuyan is rich in fresh water resources and is one of the counties with the most hot springs in the province, so it has high development value. Xiuyan is endowed with unique products on the ground and is rich in famous dry and fresh fruits such as chestnuts, Jianbang Sour Pears, and Pumpkin Pears. An average of 15,000 tussah silkworms are stocked every year, and it is known as the "No. 1 tussah county in China". The annual inoculation volume of edible fungi is 30 million plates, and it was awarded the "No. 1 Mushroom County in China" by the China Edible Fungi Association. Xiuyan is a national cattle production base county, a national straw cattle breeding demonstration county, and a cashmere goat production base county. Xiuyan's transportation and communications extend in all directions, and the county has formed a radiating platoon-shaped transportation network with Xiuyan Town as the hub. There are seven major jade trading markets in the county, including the Jade Capital, Lotus Jade Trading Market, Jade Carving Art Palace, Northeast Jade Trading Center, Wanrun Jade Carving Park, Yuma Jade Trading Center, and Hada Stele Jade Street. Viewing giant jade bodies, watching Xiu jade processing, visiting Xiu jade markets, and buying jade articles have become a tourist hotline in Northeast China regardless of winter or summer. Xiuyan County is very rich in tourism resources. Yaoshan, a national AA-level and provincial-level scenic spot, was one of the four famous mountains in Liaoning during the Qing Dynasty; Qingliang Mountain, a national AA-level and provincial ecological nature reserve, is known as the "Huangshan Mountain in Northeast China", and Rongqi Pine , strange rocks, waterfalls, caves, hot springs, cliffs, orchids, ancient temples, pagodas, and maple leaves. It is a mountain with high quality tourism resources in Northeast China; it is a national AA-level scenic spot and a provincial forest park with dense forest vegetation in Longtan Bay. Good air and clear air make it a holy place for tourists to relax and vacation; Xiaosheng Temple in Wulushan, a national AA-level and provincial key cultural relics protection unit, is the largest and most complete ancient stone temple in Liaoning Province. Xiuyan is a Manchu settlement with rich customs. It is rich in geothermal resources and has developed Qianying Xianrenzui Hot Spring and Hada Beigoutang Hot Spring. It has convenient transportation and is connected to major cities such as Shenyang, Dalian and Anshan by a road network extending in all directions. It is 243 kilometers away from Shenyang, the provincial capital, and 150 kilometers away from Anshan.

The name Xiuyan has a long history. In the early Jin Dynasty, it was called Daning Town, and later it was promoted to Xiuyan County. According to "Yajiang Xingbu Zhi" written by Wang Ji, Zhuanwen of the Jin Dynasty: "In front of Falongyan Mountain, looking north for dozens of miles, the mountains are endless, with several peaks standing sideways, shaped like a green screen, with beautiful scenery. People call it Moshi Mountain, so it has a bad reputation, but when you try to change it, it turns out to be a beautiful rock." In the Ming Dynasty, "Xiuyan" was changed to "Xiuyan". It can be seen that the name of Xiuyan County was derived from the majestic natural geographical features within the territory, and it is still used today.

Historical records show that from the Warring States Period when the Yan State opened up the Liao River Basin to the Qin Dynasty's unification of the six kingdoms, and through the Han, Wei and Jin Dynasties, the present territory of Xiuyan was under the jurisdiction of Liaodong County. The Tang Dynasty belonged to the Andong Protectorate. In the Liao Dynasty, Huinong County of Muzhou was established in the territory. In the fifth year of Tianqing's reign in the Liao Dynasty (1115), when the Jurchen tribe established the Jin Dynasty, they established Daning Town in Xiuyan, which was under the jurisdiction of Gaizhou. In the fourth year of Jin Mingchang (1193), Daning Town was promoted to Xiuyan County, and a guard was set up to guard it. After the county was abolished in the sixth year of Emperor Taizong of the Yuan Dynasty (1234), it belonged to Gaizhou Road. In the first year of Hongwu, Taizu of the Ming Dynasty (1368), Xiuyan Fort was set up to serve the people and pass judgment, and it was under the jurisdiction of Gaizhou Wei. In the sixth year of Chongzhen in the Ming Dynasty (1633), Xiuyan City was built and city guards were appointed. In the 37th year of Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty (1772), Xiuyan Hall was established. In the second year of Guangxu (1876), Xiuruo Hall was renamed Xiuyan Prefecture. In the second year of the Republic of China (1913), Xiuyan Prefecture was renamed Xiuyan County. During the Japanese imperialist occupation, it was still Xiuyan County. After the victory of the "September 3rd" in 1945, Xiuyan County was once a guerrilla zone of our party, and the Xiuyan County People's Government was established. In 1946, Xiuyan County was occupied by the Kuomintang again. In June 1947, Xiuyan County was liberated and the People's Government was established under the jurisdiction of Liaodong Province. It was under the jurisdiction of Liaoning Province in 1954. In 1958, it became a county under the jurisdiction of Dandong City. It was placed under the jurisdiction of Anshan City in January 1992.

Xiuyan jade (Xiuyan jade) is named after being produced in Xiuyan County, Liaoning Province. It is one of the famous jade in Chinese history.

Historical Brief

China has a long history of understanding and developing Xiuyan jade. For example, the Xinle Cultural Site in Shenyang, Liaoning, which dates back about 6800-7200 years ago, has a long history. A carving knife made of Xiuyan was unearthed. Found in Chaoyang, Liaozi, and Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, the Hongshan Cultural Site about 5,000 years ago also unearthed bracelets made of Xiuyan jade. A large number of jade articles unearthed from Fuhao's tomb in Yinxu, Anyang, Henan, and jade pieces unearthed from the tomb of Liu Sheng, King Jing of Zhongshan in the early Western Han Dynasty, in Mancheng, Hebei, were also partly made of Xiuyan jade. "Mao Zhuan" ("The Biography of Mao's Poems") has a record of "Xiu Ying, a beautiful stone". "Erya·Shiqi" in the early Han Dynasty records that "the beauty of the East is as beautiful as a doctor but not a witch." Pu Guopu's annotation on it is: "Yi Wulu, the name of the mountain, is now in Liaodong. Xunyouqi, jade." The above-mentioned "Xiuying" may be the ancient name of Xiuyan, or it may be converted from the homonym of "Xiuyan" Later, jade may be named after the place, so it is said that "Xiuying is a beautiful stone".

Since "Yi Wulu" is the name of a mountain in Liaodong, and "Xunyuqi" is the genus of jade, there is no doubt that "Xunyuqi" as the "beauty of the East" is the jade "Xiuying" in Liaodong. Serpentine jade products were also unearthed from Dingling among the Thirteen Tombs of the Ming Dynasty in Beijing. Since their material composition and arts and crafts characteristics are similar to those of Xiuyan, the source of the jade is likely to be Xiuyan jade. The artworks made from Xiuyan in the Qing Dynasty and modern times are even more abundant, such as those collected by the Palace Museum in Beijing. After the founding of New China, the state established a state-owned mine in the Beiwagou area of ??Xiuyan County in 1957. During the production process, in 1964, a huge piece of 2.77×5.6×6.4 meters in volume and approximately 260.76 tons in volume was automatically produced in the Beiwagou open-pit mining area. It was mainly grass green, with high transparency, and half of it was wrapped in talc. The complete Xiuyan jade block and its product "Jade King Xiuyan Jade Buddha" are now on display at the Jade Buddha Garden in Anshan City, Liaoning Province. From the late 1970s to the 1980s, the Liaoning Provincial Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, the Guiyang Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences and other units conducted systematic research on Xiuyan jade. So far, the annual output of Xiuyan jade accounts for about 50%-70% of the country's total jade output, supplying about 200 jade carving factories in more than 20 provinces, cities and districts across the country. Various jewelry and jade articles made from Xiuyan jade are not only sold throughout the country, but also have good sales in the international market.