The design process for the Sanqingshan Geological Museum began in late spring. After exploring lush, thriving mountains, we arrived at a serene valley with an oblique east-west orientation. Scattered amidst the rolling hills were several residential houses crafted from stone or brick, with cascading rice fields beyond adorned with scattered “field stones,” creating a picturesque rural landscape. It was within this enchanting setting that we discovered the museum’s location.
© Qiang Zhao
Upon closer inspection, we observed that the Sanqingshan Geological Museum’s base sloped higher to the south and lower to the north, with two indistinct streams converging amidst the mountainous terrain. At the heart of the base stood a century-old camphor tree, flourishing vibrantly, its sturdy branches reaching northward as though defying the slope. The mountains, fields, trees, and stones collectively formed our initial impression of the base of the Sanqingshan Geological Museum. © Qiang Zhao
The Sanqingshan Geological Museum has gained worldwide recognition after being declared a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site and a World Geopark. The Sanqingshan Mountain has witnessed significant changes over its 1.4 billion-year history, including three major transgressions and multiple geological movements. Notably, it showcases the most comprehensive and usual exposures of plate collisions between the Yangtze and Cathaysian paleo-plates, marking the boundary between the ...