Dunhuang city is located at the western end of Hexi Corridor in Gansu Province.

Dunhuang is a famous town on the ancient Silk Road.

In the long history of cultural exchanges between China and the West, it was once a gathering place for celebrities of Chinese and Western cultures.

Because of their combination of essence and macro, they created the world-famous Dunhuang culture and left many cultural treasures for mankind.

Crescent Spring, known as Shajing in ancient times and Yaoquan in common name, has been one of the "Eight Scenes of Dunhuang" since the Han Dynasty, and is called "Yue Quan Che Xiao".

The crescent spring is nearly 100 meters long from north to south and about 25 meters wide from east to west. The spring is deep in the east and shallow in the west, with the deepest point of about 5 meters. Bending like a crescent moon, hence the name, it is called "the first spring in the desert".

A clear spring bends, ripples linger, and it is as blue as jade.

Spring is in quicksand, the drought is not over, and the wind blows sand, which is a spectacle.

Scholars of all ages praised this unique mountain spring landform and desert wonders.

Crescent-shaped spring water, the spring water is green, like jade embedded in golden sand dunes.

The reeds by the spring are dense, the breeze rises, the blue waves ripple, and the water reflects the sand mountains, which is a spectacle.

There are many sayings about the mystery that Crescent Moon Spring is exposed to a hundred-year strong wind.

Some people think that this area may be the bend of the original Danghe River and a part of the Dunhuang Oasis. Because of the movement of sand dunes and the change of waterways, it has become a separate water body.

Because of the low terrain, the water seeping from the ground is constantly replenished into the spring water, making it trickle and not dry up in the drought.

This explanation seems to be one of the reasons why the crescent spring did not disappear, but it cannot explain why the flying sand did not fall into the crescent spring.

In a green basin surrounded by Mingsha Mountain peaks, there is a crescent-shaped clear water, which is the crescent spring.

Fire and water are always incompatible, and desert springs are hard to exist.

But the crescent moon spring falls in the yellow sand like a crescent moon.

The spring water is cool and clear, sweet and delicious. It has been lying quietly in the arms of the sand mountain for thousands of years. Although it is often attacked by strong winds and fierce sand, it is still rippling and flowing! [Edit this paragraph] Wonderland Crescent Spring is surrounded by high sand mountains, with a small lake shaped like a crescent moon in the middle.

Mingsha Mountain makes noise when it is windy, so it is called Mingsha Mountain. There is also a strange phenomenon here. Because of the terrain, the sand does not go down the mountain when it is windy, but flows from the mountain to the mountain, so the crescent spring will never be buried by sand, which is called the desert wonder.

The crescent spring is most like the crescent moon on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, which falls in the yellow sand.

The spring water is cool and clear, sweet and delicious. It has been lying quietly in the arms of the sand mountain for thousands of years. Although it is often attacked by strong winds and fierce sand, it is still rippling and flowing. This is the first spring in the desert!

Crescent Moon Spring, a dreamlike mystery, has not been submerged by quicksand or dried up by drought for thousands of years.

There is this spring in the vast desert, this water in the black wind and yellow sand, this scene in the desolation, which won the rhythm of heaven and earth, and the magic of nature is fascinating.

"Clear sky Wan Li, clear sky Wan Li, beautiful crescent moon spring, shady mountains surrounded by sand, a pool of clear water and green ripples".

"Crescent Moon" is one of the eight scenic spots in Dunhuang.

Crescent Spring is a national key scenic spot and one of the 40 major tourist attractions in China, and is known as the first spring in the desert.

The Living Desert

Not only is it a world-famous treasure house of cultural relics-Mogao Grottoes, but it also has a variety of natural features and cultural landscapes such as "lonely smoke in the desert, side walls, camel bells in ancient roads and oasis in clear springs".

Among them, the crescent spring scenic spot in Mingsha Mountain is the best among many natural landscapes in Dunhuang.

Throughout the ages, it has been known as "the wonders of the desert" and "one of the scenic spots beyond the Great Wall".

Mogao Grottoes

The artistic landscape of the nine-story Mogao Grottoes and the Mogao Grottoes east of Mingsha Mountain are the "three wonders" connected by the southern vein of Dunhuang.

Become a tourist attraction that people in China and even the world yearn for.

Mingsha

Mingsha Mountain is five kilometers south of the city, named after the sound of quicksand.

Mountains are formed by the accumulation of quicksand, and the sand is divided into five colors: yellow, green, white and black.

Shajiao Mountain, also known as Shensha Mountain, was called Mingsha Mountain in Han Dynasty and Mingsha Mountain in Jin Dynasty.

Its mountains stretch for more than 40 kilometers from east to west and about 20 kilometers from north to south. The elevation of the main peak is1715m, and the sand ridges are adjacent.

The sand falls with the feet, which is really rare in the world.

Crescent spring surrounds Mingsha Mountain, which looks like a crescent moon, hence its name.

In ancient times, it was called Shajing, also known as Yaoquan, which was misrepresented as Wowachi and renamed Crescent Spring in Qing Dynasty.

Area 13.2 mu, with an average water depth of 4.2 meters.

The water is sweet and clear, like a mirror.

There are only tens of meters between quicksand and spring water.

However, although this spring water is not covered by quicksand in the strong wind, it is located in the Gobi, and the spring water is not turbid and dry.

This unique landform with the birth of sand springs and the preservation of spring sand is indeed a "wonder of the world".

[Edit this paragraph] The location of Crescent Spring is located 5 kilometers southwest of Dunhuang City (coordinates: 40 05'11.98 ",94 40' 09.99" east longitude), which is a magical lake wonder in the long desert.

At the foot of Mingsha Mountain, the spring water forms a lake surrounded by sand dunes, which looks like a crescent moon, hence the name Crescent Spring.

Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Spring are twin sisters in the desert Gobi. "The mountain is famous for its spirit, and the water is beautiful with spirit".

Whether it's a bird's eye view from the top of the mountain or swimming by the spring, tourists will be fascinated.

There is indeed a feeling of "singing sand mountains and washing the heart with crescent springs".

In recent years, with the vigorous development of tourism, the local area has taken various construction and protection measures to the scenic spot, which has greatly changed its appearance. At the same time, desert entertainment projects such as sand therapy, sand skiing, gliding and skydiving, camel riding, etc. were also carried out, which made tourists interesting and endless.

[Edit this paragraph] Historical overview It was called "manhole" in ancient times, at the northern foot of Mingsha Mountain, 7 kilometers south of the city.

The east-west length is 2 18m, the north-south width is 54m, and the average water depth is about 5m.

The crescent moon spring is like dawn, and the ripples are lingering.

Potamogeton and Charophyta grow in spring, with dense reeds on the south bank and quicksand around them. Although spring is exposed to strong winds, it is not covered with sand.

Because "the spring reflects the moon without dust" and "the ancient sand does not fill the spring, and the spring does not wither", it has become a great spectacle.

According to legend, there are iron-backed fish and seven-star grass growing in the spring, which are specialized in treating incurable diseases and can live forever, so it is also called "medicine spring".

It is said that Crescent Moon Spring was a tourist attraction as early as the Han Dynasty.

In the Tang Dynasty, there were boats and temples by the spring.

On the south bank of the spring, there used to be a group of simple and elegant buildings, from east to west in turn, the Niangniang Hall, the Dragon Palace, the Bodhisattva Hall, Wang Yaodong and the Raytheon Platform.

There are more than 100 colored sculptures and hundreds of murals in the main hall.

There are plaques and inscriptions in important halls, such as "First Spring", "Absolute Heaven and Earth", "Semi-Regular Spring", "Connecting Kunlun Mountain with the Potential" and "Mastering Gankun". Calligraphy is elegant and handsome, and it can be called top grade.

At that time, there were pavilions, magnificent temples, palaces and colonnades, all of which were set by the water.

The trees are lush, the spring scenery and the mountains set each other off, and the ancient temple is filled with incense all the year round.

Many poets in past dynasties played the piano, recited poems, recited poems and spent money.

According to historical records, in the fourth year of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty (1 13), Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty got a horse in the Wowa Pool. Later generations suspected that the Crescent Moon Spring was the Wowa Pool of the Han Dynasty, so they set up a stone tablet and wrote "Wowa Pool of the Han Dynasty".

"Wild horses flying in all directions, a pool of shadows illusory in Youlong".

Therefore, the strange crescent moon spring adds more legends.

[Edit this paragraph] The grim situation The formation of crescent spring mainly depends on three factors: the geological structure of crescent spring itself, the topographic conditions of low-lying areas and the groundwater level in higher areas.

At the end of 1940s, the groundwater level in Dunhuang and its southern area was about10m higher than the current water level. Under this high water level condition, the groundwater in the northwest plain enters the spring area through underground runoff and overflows in the low-lying depression, forming a crescent spring. High regional groundwater level is an important condition for the formation of crescent spring, and it is also the basic guarantee for the crescent spring not to dry up for thousands of years.

The crescent spring in history is not only "inexhaustible", but also has a great surface and depth.

According to documents, during the Qing Dynasty, big ships could still sail here.

At the beginning of the 20th century, someone came here to fish, and his travel notes said, "The water in the pool is extremely deep, and the bottom is sand, which is unfathomable.

"In the limited historical records and poems, Crescent Spring has always been characterized by rippling blue waves, lush fish and shallow water plants, and it is in harmony with Mingsha Mountain. Among the local people, there are three treasures: iron back fish, seven-star grass and five-color sand.

Until 1960 years ago, the spring water did not change much, with the maximum water depth of 9 meters and the lake area of 22.5 mu.

In the mid-1970s, local land reclamation and pumping irrigation, as well as the destruction of surrounding vegetation and soil erosion in recent years, led to a sharp drop in the groundwater level in Dunhuang.

As a result, the water level of Crescent Spring dropped sharply.

The minimum storage time of Crescent Spring is 1985, when the average water depth of Crescent Spring is only 0.7 to 0.8 meters.

Because of lack of water, the spring dried up at that time, but people could leave, and the crescent spring also formed two Koizumi who were no longer crescent-shaped.

This makes "whether the Crescent Moon Spring will disappear tomorrow" become the focus of many people's attention.

Since then, Dunhuang city has taken various ways to replenish water to Crescent Spring.

[Edit this paragraph] Since 2000, Dunhuang City has taken emergency measures to recharge the rivers around Yueya Spring to replenish the water level of Yueya Spring so that it will not dry up temporarily.

In 2004, the water level dropped to 1.3 meters, and the spring area decreased to 7.8 mu.

At present, the water level of Crescent Moon Spring is around 1 meter. If it is not fundamentally treated, Crescent Moon Spring, a world-class heritage, will be in danger of drying up.

With the implementation of the loan of 20 million yuan from China Development Bank, the emergency treatment project of crescent spring water level decline will also be started at the end of 2006.

Crescent Spring will be rescued by various means such as "saving water", "replenishing water" and "diverting water".

1994 65438+1October 10, Gansu Mingsha Mountain-Yueya Spring Scenic Spot was approved by the State Council to be included in the third batch of national scenic spots.

Due to the ecological deterioration in the surrounding areas, since the 1960s, the water level of Yueya Spring in Mingsha Mountain in Dunhuang City has dropped by 6 to 7 meters, and the water area has been greatly reduced.

In order to save the magical desert landscape of crescent spring in Mingsha Mountain, the emergency treatment project of crescent spring water level decline with a total investment of 4 1 10,000 yuan was officially put into operation in early 2007.

In the emergency treatment project, four seepage fields were built around the crescent spring to seep underground, and the water level of the crescent spring was maintained and improved by increasing the groundwater level around the crescent spring.

The project was completed in May 2008, and the water level of Crescent Spring was stable and gradually rising.

With the emergency treatment project of Yueya Spring in Dunhuang, Gansu Province put into use, the water level of Yueya Spring continues to rise.

Recently, Yue Quan in Dunhuang was reborn as a "Ziquan", and the spectacle of "Three Springs Dependent" appeared.

Crescent Spring, which looks like a crescent moon, is located 5 kilometers south of Dunhuang City, Gansu Province. It has become a famous scenic spot in China because of the eternal natural wonders of "sand water * * * mountain spring * * *".

[Edit this paragraph] There is another story about the formation of Crescent Moon Spring and Mingsha Mountain: there was no Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Moon Spring here before, but there was a screamo temple.

One year, on the eighth day of April, the annual Buddha washing festival was held in the temple, and all good men and women burned incense and worshipped Buddha in the temple.

During the Buddhist activity of "sprinkling holy water", the abbot took out a bowl of ancestral holy water from Leiyin Temple and put it in front of the temple.

Suddenly I heard a heretic warlock loudly challenge me to compete with the abbot.

I saw the warlock waving his sword and mumbling something. At the moment, it was dark, the wind was blowing hard, and the yellow sand was flying all over the sky, burying the Lei Yin Temple in the yellow sand.

Strangely, the bowl of holy water in front of the temple is safe and sound, and it is still in its original place. The magician tried to fill the bowl with sand, but no matter how great the magic was, there was never a grain of sand in the bowl.

The holy water bowl is still safe until a sand mountain is formed around the bowl.

The warlock had no choice but to leave in anger.

Just a few steps later, I heard a bang. The bowl of holy water turned into a clear spring and the warlock turned into a pool of black stone.

It turns out that this bowl of holy water was given to the abbot of Leiyin Temple by Sakyamuni. It has been handed down from generation to generation and is specially designed for people to eliminate diseases and disasters, so it is called "holy water".

Because heretics do evil and harm creatures, they show their spirits and punish them, making the bowl turn into a spring and form a crescent spring.