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Ancient Mulan Dam
Mulan Dam is situated at the foot of Mulan Mountain in Pitou Village, it is five kilometers south of Putian City. Ancient Mulan Dam is one of largest irrigation system in ancient China and counts as National's Key Historic Preservation Site.
Mulan Dam was built in 1075 during the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), and has turned huge of land into fertile soil, boosting the economic development of Putian. Water is channeled from the lake into large and small canals with a combined length of 120 kilometers to irrigate the northern and southern plains of Putian. Mulan Lake is warm and rainy, with typical subtropical marine monsoon climate. It has an average annual temperature of 18-21°C, therefore suitable for traveling here all year round.
The established of Mulan Dam originally started by Lady Qian Siniang and Mr. Lin Chongshi in 1064 AD, they inspired by amazing Luoyang Stone Bridge of Quanzhou that was built in 1059 AD. Lady Qian spent every penny she had to build this dam, but unfortunately, they chose the wrong site, and failed. Despite of her failure, Qian Siniang gained high respect for her courage and determination, thus people built large statue of Lady Qian sitting beside Mazu, and holding a Chinese coin; the Lady Qian statue was founded in Meizhou Island.
Eleven years after Lady Qian failure, the Emperor sent Mr. Lihong to try the second attempt. He drew upon the lessons of his failed predecessors, but also sought the aid of a local monk, Fen Zhiri, and in eight years they completed the 219.3 meter dam, with 32 sluice gates.
The Mulan Dam helped irrigate 32,000 acres of farmland, helping Putian to feed its growing population, and from that time on Putian became a major city, as well as an international commercial hub. In order to commemorate the four ancestors who built the dam , people of later generations erected Mulan Pond Memorial Hall. The hall houses statues of the pioneers alongside a number of stone tablets with inscriptions by famous scholars of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).