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Stone heap faces danger of collapse in Yushu
By Yan Jie and Zhang Jin (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2010-04-19 16:04
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Jiana Mani Heap, one of the three state-level cultural relics in Yushu, has begun collapsing after the recent 7.1-magnitude quake.
The stone heap is located at Xinzhai village, which is three kilometers away from Jiegu town. Boasting a history of more than 1,700 years, the 2.5-meter- high heap is known as the largest one in the world, measuring 283 meters long and 74 meters wide at its base.
Three of the eight white pagodas amid the heap have collapsed so far.
Local Tibetans have maintained a tradition of throwing little rocks onto the heap, as a way to pay tribute to the deceased. Our reporter saw a herdsman direct four others to lift a giant 700-kilogram white Mani stone onto the heap using a pulley. When asked, he said he felt it a must to add a stone onto it because they had lost so many lives in this earthquake.
