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The Leshan Giant Buddha (乐山大佛) is the world’s largest statue of a Buddha carved out of a cliff and faces Mount Emei (we visited Mt Emei later). The Giant Buddha, standing at 71 metres, was built during the Tang Dynasty. It has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996.

The Leshan Giant Buddha is as famous as the standing Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan which were dynamited and destroyed in 2001 by the Taliban.

Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan, before and after.

Other statues beside the Leshan Giant Buddha.

The stairways up the cliff.

Next: Mount. Emei