ABSTRACT
Huashan literally means “flower mountain”. Several mountains in China are called Huashan, and they are located in Zibo, Shandong; Kaihua, Zhejiang; Dawu, Hubei; Anqing, Anhui; and Chongzuo, Guangxi. Among these “flower mountains”, some were named after their flower-like shapes, others were named because of its prominence of flowers and blossoms. Uniquely, Huashan in Chongzuo, Guangxi was named because of the presence of large amounts of rock paintings on many cliffs that are located on both sides of the Zuojiang River. In ethnic Zhuang local dialect, there is a word “pyalaiz”, which is pronounced Ba Lai and means that there are many decorative patterns on the mountains. These decorated mountains are paraphrased Huashan in mandarin Chinese. Many rock paintings are discovered in the Zuojiang River valley in Pingxiang, Longzhou, Ningming, Chongzuo, and Fusui of Guangxi. Because the rock paintings on Huashan in Ningming County have the largest dimensions, the largest varieties of portraits, and the richest contents, the cliff frescoes on the Zuojiang River basin are collectively referred to as the Huashan Frescos, also known as Huashan Rock Paintings (HRP).
