The stele is inscribed at the east foot of Jiaoshan Mountain. In the eighth year of Qingli in the Song Dynasty (1048), stone carvings of calligraphers of the Liang and Tang Dynasties were collected and collected in the Baomo Pavilion. It was built and destroyed many times in the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. (1821～1850) Rebuilt in Haiyun Nunnery. In 1958, the Zhenjiang Municipal Cultural Relics Management Committee concentrated the inscriptions scattered in the southern suburbs in Jiaoshan, and repaired the old temple sites such as Yufeng Nunnery, Xianglin Nunnery, and Haiyun Nunnery for the display of inscriptions. There are nearly 500 inscriptions in existence, including more than 200 inscriptions on historical materials and calligraphy art, and about 50 inscriptions on other aspects. Various calligraphy styles are available, all written by famous artists.
The earliest historical stele inscription is the "Stele of Renjingguan Master Wei in Runzhou of the Tang Dynasty", which was erected in the second year of Yifeng of the Tang Dynasty (677). The stele is 2.42 meters high and 0.87 meters wide. The inscription is in regular script, with 33 lines and 75 characters per line. The stele narrates the life of Master Wei Jiang (595-677). In the 8th line of the stele, there is the title "Jie Jianwei, the Lord of Qiaoshanxu, who defended Runzhou". "Qiaoshanxu" has not been recorded, which provides information for the study of the military fortification of Runzhou (now Zhenjiang) in the Tang Dynasty. In addition, for example, the Tang Dynasty Li Deyu's relic stone note unearthed from the foundation of the Iron Tower of Ganlu Temple, the "Dagang Tax Chief Wenqing Zhao Shijunshou Temple Notes" in the fifth year of Song Baoyou's fifth year (1257), and the Yuan Dynasty's "Reconstruction of Jiaoshan Zen Temple Yuanwu" "Reception of the Nunnery", "Zhenjiang Prefecture Confucianism Monument on the Mountain" in the 40th year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty (1561), "The Monument of the Creation of Yidu in Jingkou" in the second year of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty (1876), "The Monument of Mining in Chongqing in the Sixth Year of Guangxu" (1880), etc. They are all rare materials for studying local history. Another example is the "Picture of the Traces of Yu" which was re-edited in the 12th year of Shaoxing in the Song Dynasty (1142), and the content of the "Picture of the Traces of Yu" inscribed on the stone in the 7th year of Fuchang (1136) in the Forest of Steles in Xi'an is basically the same. The "Pictures of the Traces of Yu" by Jiao Shan are engraved with the 11 words "In the first month of the third year of Yuanfu (1100), according to the Chang'an version", indicating that the two existing "Pictures of the Traces of Yu" are from the same Chang'an version of the Northern Song Dynasty. This is very important for discussing the time and author of the creation of "Yuji Tu".
The most famous calligraphy art category is "The Inscription of the Crane", signed "Huayang Zhenyi" and written by "Shanghuangshan Qiao". It is a commemorative article mourning Jiahe, with no date and author. Since the Song Dynasty, Wang Xizhi of the Eastern Jin Dynasty and Tao Hongjing of the Southern Dynasty have said that most scholars believe that the calligraphy of "He Ming" represents the style of regular script in the Southern Dynasties. It has always been highly praised and is an important work in the discussion of Southern Dynasties calligraphy. The "Inscription of the Crane" was originally located under the Crane Rock at the western foot of Jiaoshan Mountain. It was often hit by water waves and later collapsed into the river. In the 52nd year of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1713), Chen Pengnian, who served as the prefect of Jiangning Prefecture and Suzhou Prefecture, obtained it from the river. Five pieces of rough stone were placed at Guanyin Temple in the southwest of Jiaoshan Mountain. The full text originally had 178 words, but now only 92 words remain, including 11 incomplete words. In 1961, it was moved to the backyard of the Forest of Steles, glued and embedded in the wall, and a half pavilion on the top of the mountain was built outside to protect it. On the wall of the left corridor of the pavilion is inlaid a stone inscribed by Chen Pengnian in the 52nd year of Kangxi (1713) titled "Re-establishing the Inscription of the Crane", which is 0.63 meters wide and 1.18 meters long. On the wall of the right corridor of the pavilion are two stones from "Chongmo Gu Xiuyuan (Chen)'s Family Collection of the Crane Inscriptions and Postscripts" written in the fourth year of Kangxi's reign (1665). They are each 1.6 meters long and 0.8 meters wide. They record the circulation of the rubbings collected by Gu Xiuyuan's family. On the corridors on the east and west sides are also inlaid with 4 stones from "Lin Qizhong's Stone Rubbings of Mohe He Ming and Song Dynasties" in the 53rd year of Kangxi's reign, which are 0.36 meters wide and 1.5 to 1.72 meters long; 1 stone was copied by Emperor Gaozong of the Qing Dynasty according to the handed down edition. , 2.12 meters long and 0.9 meters wide.
Moss rock carvings are along the river at the western foot of Jiaoshan Mountain in Zhenjiang. The cliffs are full of poems, inscriptions and names of tourists from the Southern Dynasties onwards. 200 of them have been identified. The famous one is "Zhongxuan, Fazhi, Mifu Yuanyou and Xinwei Mengxia Guanshan Woodcutter" by Mi Fu of the Song Dynasty. Lu You's "Lu Wuguan, He Deqi, Zhang Yuzhong, Han Wujiu and Longxing Jiashen walked in the snow on the 29th day of the leap month to watch the inscription of the Crane. They placed wine above the fire, and the war was still going on. Watching the warships in the wind and poles in the mist, they were all drunk and went boating in the evening. There are inscriptions such as "Returning from Ganlu Temple".
At the end of 1986, the adjacent buildings such as Yufeng Nunnery, Huaiyin Jingshe, and Dizang Hall were included in the Forest of Steles and underwent comprehensive renovations. The display in the Forest of Steles has also been adjusted according to category and era. Now Jiaoshan Stele Forest has been placed under the management of Zhenjiang Cultural Relics Management Committee.
Among all the stone inscriptions in the Jiaoshan Forest of Steles, "The Crane Inscription" is the first one. It has been praised by literati of all ages at home and abroad. It enjoys the reputation of "the ancestor of big calligraphy" and "the crown of calligraphers". Su Dongpo commented: "It is difficult for large characters to be dense and seamless, and it is difficult for small characters to be broad and sufficient." Wang Shizhen of the Ming Dynasty said: "This inscription is ancient and clumsy, majestic and elegant, which confirms the majesty of the calligrapher."
"The structure of the font has the roundness and vigor of cursive script, the thin strokes of Han Li, and the sinews of seal script. Among the many inscriptions in our country, "The Crane Inscription" in Jiaoshan, Zhenjiang and the "Shimen Inscription" in Hanzhong, Shaanxi have been The "King of Monuments" and "Two Inscriptions in the North and South" are widely circulated. The "Shimen Inscription" was engraved on the east wall of Shimen in Hanzhong City in the second year of Yongping in the Northern Wei Dynasty (AD 509). It records the history of Yang, the governor of the Liang and Qin Dynasties. The story of the re-opening of the stone gate of Baoxie Road in the Han Dynasty
Among the calligraphy art stone carvings, in addition to the "Inscription of the Crane", there are also calligraphy by Huang Tingjian of the Song Dynasty, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion by Mi Fulin and Wang Xizhi, and the Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty. In the 40th year (1561), he reprinted the portrait of Su Dongpo painted by Zhao Mengfu of the Yuan Dynasty and the "Ode to the Former Red Cliff" in small regular script.
Others include: Wei Master Stele, Qianlong Imperial Stele, Preface to the Lanting Collection, and Mi Fulin's "Lanting Preface". ", "Jiaoshan" banner and the seven unique poems "Three Tours to Jiaoshan", the stone carvings of "Yi Traces" of the Song Dynasty, the Chengjiantang stone carvings, Huang Tingjian's "The Theory of Cuhu Li", Qin Jie stone gate carvings, etc.