The Dazu Rock Carving is located in the southeast of the Sichuan Basin, 271 kilometers away from the west of Chengdu, 167 kilometers away from the east of Chongqing. The Dazu Rock Carving lies in Dazu County, which is 167 kilometers away from the urban area of Chongqing city. It's a general designation of the stone statues distributed in 76 places in the whole Dazu County. The number of the stone statues amounts to 60,000.

The Dazu Rock Carvings was built from 650 in the Tang Dynasty and continued to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and the Qing Dynasty (1616-1911). It is as famous as the Mogao Cave in Dunhuang, Gansu Province. The rock carvings in these places are very distinguished both at home and abroad. Among the rock carvings, there are more than 5,000 statues and over100, 000 Chinese characters of inscriptions and epigraphs. The Buddhist statues dominate in this rock carving group, and the Taoist and the Confucian stone figures can also be seen.

The Dazu Rock Carving is a piece of great work of China's grotto art.  It's not only rich in content but also carved with marvelous technique. It skillfully combines the scientific principles of mechanics, optics, and clairvoyance with statues themselves and landform. The Dazu Rock Carving is reputed as "Artistic Palace of the Tang and Song Dynasties".

Baodingshan of Dazu Rock Carving

Centered on Dafowan (Great Buddha Crescent), Baodingshan of Dazu Rock Carving has 13 scenic spots. Xiaofowan, Daota, Longtoushan, Shushishan, Huang po, are in the east; Gaoguanyin is in the south; Guangdashan, Fozhuyan are in the west; Yanwan, longtan, Duimianfo are in the north. The stone statues in Dafowan are on the largest scale and have the highest artistic value. They are kept in the best state. Dafowan is a horseshoe-shaped mountain. There are more than 10,000 small or large statues distributed in the 500-meter-long and 15-30-meter-high cliff. At the same time, there are some stone tablets recording the origin of Baodingshan and Buddhism. The statues in Dafowan are carved according to the landform. They are tall and magnificent with wide subjects and in rigorous design. Buddhist image is full of novel and unique conception, with skillful carving technique and rich color of folk custom. The content is mainly about the sutra stories. The main features "Six Recurrents", "Loving parents Buddhist Image", "Hail Buddhist Image", etc. are vivid and full of profound significance.

Beishan of Dazu Rock Carving

Beishan of Dazu Rock carving was firstly excavated in the first year (A.D. 892) of the Jingfu reign of the Tang dynasty. After the Five Dynasties and the Southern and Northern Song Dynasties, nearly 10,000 statues were built in Fowan, Yingpanpo, Guanyinpo, Northern Tower Temple, Fo'er cliff, etc. The statues in Fowan are the most concentrated. There are 290 small caves in the cliff. In the 300-meter-long and 7-meter high cliff, there are 6 stone tablets, 55 inscriptions, 8 stone pillars engraved Buddhist classics, one piece of "Wenshu Treating Patients" picture in intaglio, 264 niches of stone statues. The Buddha images in Fowan are engraved carefully and complicatedly, with pretty and easy posture and in special style. The statue of Puxian Buddha in Xinshenche Grotto is fine, which is hailed as "Oriental Venus". Rotating Wheel Storing Buddhist Classics Grotto is called "the palace of stone statues". Weijunjing Tablet, Caijing Tablet and Old Wenxiao Tablet exist in the world solely. Not only they are the treasures of handwriting, but also they offset the vacancy of historical materials. They have very high value. Stone statues in Fowan are divided into the south region and north region. Most statues in the south region are the works of the late Tang dynasty and Five dynasties. Most statues in the north region are the works of the Southern and Northern Song dynasties. The features of the works of the late Tang dynasty are full and dignified. They are engraved in flowing line, with simple and honest temperaments and simple attire. The works of the Five dynasties are exquisite and colorful. The attires are from the simple to the complex. They get rid of the influence of foreign culture, and have the characteristics of the stone statue's transition period. The works of the Southern and Northern Song dynasties have outstanding national characteristics.

Nanshan Rock Carving

Standing at the southeast of Dazu County, the Taoism doctrine is the main theme in this part. Taoist gods' figures are carved vividly .The cave of Sanqing demonstrates the Taoist gods' ranking in the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Therefore, tourists will be impressed by these colorful clay creations.

Shizhuanshan Rock Carving

This section is 25 kilometers (about 15.5 miles) far from the southwest of Dazu County. The niche of Confucius and that of Lao Tzu can be seen here .Buddhist, Taoist and Confucius statues are integrated in this part which is quite rare in Chinese grotto art.

Shimenshan Rock Carving

Apart 20 kilometers (about 12.4miles) from the eastern part of Dazu County, the Shimenshan Rock Carving combines Buddhist and Taoist statues, but the later one predominates. In addition to these stone figures, there are also some inscriptions and remarks beside the figures. Representaion of some gods' figures are lifelike and vivid. For example, outside the niche of the Great Jade Emperor stands the statuary of Shun Feng Er meaning 'Favorable Wind Ears' which looks as if he is looking into the distance and the figure of Chien Li Yen meaning 'Thousand League Eyes' which looks as if he is listening to attentively.

The Dazu rock carvings mainly contain Buddhist statues, but there are also some Taoist, Confucian and historical figures, and many valuable inscribed tablets. The statues show maturity of carving and national features, breaking new ground in religious art.

The Dazu rock carvings provide rich and valuable material for research into ancient China's culture, arts, philosophy, religion and history. In the spring of 1945, Chinese historians made an overall investigation of the Dazu rock carvings, and published their findings, marking the beginning of full-scale research into the Grottoes. The Chinese Government has made great efforts to protect, research and publicize the Dazu rock carvings, and in recent years, the Grottoes have attracted a large number of foreign experts, scholars and visitors.