Magical Stone Terraced Fields of Jiuxiang Caves in Kunming
Chinese Name: 宜良九乡溶洞神田
English Name: Magical Stone Terraced Fields of Jiuxiang Caves in Kunming
The Jiuxiang Caves (九乡洞), located in Kunming (昆明), are surrounded by extensive carbonate rock formations that date back to the Sinian period, approximately 600 million years ago. These carbonate rocks spread across the Jiuxiang Maitian River (麦田河) region, covering an area of about 100 square kilometers. Since the Cenozoic Era (65 million years ago), the Yunnan Plateau has been uplifted along with the Tibetan Plateau, and the erosion of the Nanpan River (南盘江) has carved the eastern Yunnan Plateau, creating the stunning Nanpan River Canyon (南盘江峡谷). The first-level tributary, the Maidian River (麦囚河), deeply cuts through the Jiuxiang area.
Through the powerful interactions of surface water flow and groundwater flow, a unique and spectacular karst cave group and lush canyons have formed in Jiuxiang. The intermittent uplift of the earth’s crust has led to the evolution of a multi-layered karst cave system, resulting in an impressive and distinct system of caverns.
The Divine Fields of Jiuxiang
Inside the Jiuxiang Caves, there is a remarkable area known as the “Divine Fields” (神田), scientifically referred to as the Bianshi Dam (边石坝). This is a rare landscape formed by chemical sedimentation in karst caves. The cave walls are permeated by saturated karst water rich in calcium and magnesium bicarbonate, which flows gently to form sheet-like water flows. Upon encountering obstacles, sedimentation occurs, leading to the creation of a natural wonder formed over billions of years—the Bianshi Dam group, which is the largest of its kind among the over 2,000 open cave scenic spots in the world.
The Divine Fields are a large Bianshi lake group, covering an area of over 100 square meters and reaching depths of more than 10 meters. They exhibit a staggered arrangement and breathtaking landscapes, making them a rare wonder praised by international cave experts as one of the world’s greatest natural marvels.
Like the terraced rice fields of Yuanyang (元阳梯田), the Divine Fields are characterized by accumulations of calcium carbonate, making them the most distinctive landscape within the Jiuxiang cave group.
The largest area of the Divine Fields spans hundreds of square meters, with a maximum depth of 3 to 4 meters. Their graceful and staggered shapes create an impressive sight. In Jiuxiang, the groundwater flows sheet-like along the sloped cave walls. When it encounters obstacles, the hydrodynamic conditions change, leading to the release of carbon dioxide gas from the water, resulting in calcium carbonate accumulating to form barriers, known as the Bianshi Dam group. The Jiuxiang Divine Fields represent a rare large-scale cave Bianshi dam group in China, known for its beautiful and staggered formations.
