LESHAN GIANT BUDDHA CHINA

Around the year 713 A.D., construction began on the Leshan Giant Buddha in Sichuan, China. The construction of the monument, the largest statue of the premodern world, was halted for about 70 years due to funding issues. The project was resumed and completed by the year 803 A.D. At the time, the raging rivers which now calmly lay at the statues feetmade it difficult for ships to pass, hence why a Chinese monk sought to have the statue created. He felt the statue in Buddhas honour would get the water to calm down. In the end, so much stone was carved out of the mountain to make the statue that when it fell into the water and stayed there, it actually did make the turbulent waters calmer and easier for ships to pass through. Built entirely by hand, this giant statue remains the largest statue of Buddha known to man.