Mengshan Giant Buddha

Mengshan Giant Buddha is also known as Xishan Giant Buddha and it is located in the northwestern of Sidi village in Jinsheng township of Jinyuan district in Taiyuan.

This 63-meter-high sitting statue is just eight meters lower than the Leshan Giant Buddha in Sichuan province and 10 meters higher than Buddhas of Bamyan in Afghanistan. Buddhas of Bamyan were thought to be constructed between the third to the seventh century. Historical records show that the construction of Xishan Giant Buddha began in 551, 162 years earlier than that of Leshan Giant Buddha.

In terms of height, Xishan Giant Buddha is the world's second largest giant Buddha and it is the oldest known large stone-carved Buddha in the world in terms of time.