Timing Slope. [Photo provided by Ban Xia to en.nantong.gov.cn]

The five mountains in Nantong's Langshan Mountain scenic areas are a rich repository of the city's history and culture, adorned with numerous cultural relics and inscriptions etched into its precipices, preserving the earliest chapters of Nantong's history.

Spread across the five mountains are more than 70 sites with legible inscriptions, while an additional 20 sites bear inscriptions that have weathered with time, making the words difficult to discern.

The earliest inscriptions date back to the late Tang Dynasty (618-907), while there are eight inscriptions from the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and over 30 from the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911).

Inscriptions from the Song Dynasty. [Photo provided by Ban Xia to en.nantong.gov.cn]

The northern part of Langshan Mountain hosts the highest concentration of stone inscriptions among the five mountains.

To fully appreciate the cliffside inscriptions, it is recommended to start the journey from the "Lingshan Mountain Sacred Place" stone archway at Guanyin Zen Temple before proceeding to explore the surrounding environment.

The temple is nestled beneath Guanyin Rock with its striking cliffs, the first area in the scenic locale to be bathed in moonlight at night. Beneath Guanyin Rock lies Timing Slope, home to 15 inscription sites.

These inscriptions not only feature Nantong's original name, but also chronicle the city's history and document the transformations undergone by Langshan and Jianshan mountains.

The oldest inscription dates back to 894, while the most prized are two inscriptions from the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907-960).