Bellow Gorge

Origin of Bellow Gorge

Cruising downstream 2 kilometers from White Emperor City, there is a yellow brown colored precipice on the northern bank of Yangtze River. Some gaps can be seen on the cliff and from afar a large cave can be seen in which there are piles of quadrate wooden boxes. In the distance, they look like bellows, so the gorge is called the Bellow Gorge.

Secret of Bellow Gorge

Local legend says the bellow was placed by Lu Ban, he founder of Chinese woodwork living during the Zhou Dynasty (770 BC- 221 BC). As a matter of fact, the wooded boxes are not the bellow placed by Lu Ban. They are the suspending coffins left by ancient Ba people who lived earlier than Lu Ban. This secret was not revealed until 1971. In 1971, three brave rhizotomists risked their lives to climb upto the gaps on Bellow Gorge to collect herbs. Finally, the rhizotomists revealed the secret of Bellow Gorge. The 3 had found the remains of ancient Ba people, swords and bronze axe in the coffins. The discovery of the three rhizotomists makes great contribution to the study of ancient Ba culture and the ancient culture of the upstream area of Yangtze River.

Suspending Coffins of Bellow Gorge

The best place to view suspending coffins is on the plank road in the gorge. suspending coffins are more than 10 meters high on the cliff. It is hard to reach. Thus, the suspending coffins are amazing and incredible.

Suspending coffin is an ancient local funeral traditions. It is very popular in Sichuan and Chongqing area. There are many suspending coffin sites in Qutang Gorge. Besides Bellow Gorge, the Armor Cave across the river has more relics, including Ba style sword, bronze shoe and so on.