Yi'an District 义安区

Setting and landscape

The land rises to low hills in the southeast and falls to the Yangtze alluvial plain in the northwest, with rolling ridges between; mountains, hills, river islands and diked polder fields all occur here. The highest point is Tianmen Mountain (天门山) at 576.6 metres. The district holds more than 60 kilometres of the Yangtze waterway. It lies in a humid subtropical monsoon transition zone, with four distinct seasons, about 1,370 mm of rain and an average temperature of 16.2°C a year.

History

The district government counts the area among the birthplaces of Chinese bronze culture, with some 3,000 years of mining and smelting. The name Yi'an first appears in 888, when the Tang split five townships from Nanling to form Yi'an County with its seat at Shun'an (顺安). In 951 the Southern Tang renamed it Tongling County and moved the seat to the riverside at the old Tongguan town, today's Wusong (五松镇).

On 21 April 1949 the county was taken during the People's Liberation Army's Yangtze crossing, and the district calls its seat the first county town freed south of the river. It was merged into Tongling city in 1958, restored in 1959 and placed under Tongling in 1974. In December 2015 the State Council approved turning the county into Yi'an District.

What to see

The Fenghuangshan ancient copper mine site (凤凰山古铜矿遗址), which includes the Jinniudong (金牛洞) and Muyushan (木鱼山) mining and smelting remains, is a national key cultural relics protection unit. Fenghuang Mountain scenic area (凤凰山景区) and Yongquan Farm (永泉农庄) are national 4A scenic areas. Other natural sights include Gexian Cave (葛仙洞), Shuanglong Cave (双龙洞) and Dishui Rock (滴水岩); historic ones include Qingliang Temple (清凉寺), the tomb of Chen Zhu (陈翥墓) and the Zhao family opera stage (赵氏戏楼).

Food and local products

Local products include Yequeshe tea (野雀舌茶), ginger and Shun'an sesame crisp (顺安酥糖). The crisp is made from a small-grained old sesame variety, pounded by hand, mixed with thick malt syrup, rolled into long strips and cut into small pieces that stay crumbly without sticking to the teeth. Tongling Fengdan (铜陵凤丹) and white ginger have been granted national geographical indication protection.

Getting oriented

The Beijing–Fuzhou high-speed railway, the Nanjing–Anqing intercity line, the Shanghai–Tongling and Tongling–Jiujiang railways and three expressways cross the district. Two Yangtze bridges at Tongling carry road and rail north towards Hefei (合肥), and the urban area is just over 20 km from Jiuhuashan Airport (九华山机场).

Highlights

• Fenghuangshan ancient copper mine site 凤凰山古铜矿遗址: National key protected site covering the Jinniudong and Muyushan mining and smelting remains.
• Fenghuang Mountain scenic area 凤凰山景区: National 4A scenic area.
• Yongquan Farm 永泉农庄: National 4A scenic area.
• Shun'an sesame crisp 顺安酥糖: Hand-pounded sesame mixed with malt syrup, rolled and cut into small crumbly pieces.
• Tianmen Mountain 天门山: The district's highest point at 576.6 metres.