When people think of the ancient salt fields in Danzhou City, Hainan Province, the first place that usually comes to mind is the Yangpu Ancient Salt Field in Tianyan Village. In fact, there is another well-preserved salt field in Yanding Village (盐丁村) , Eman Town, Danzhou City, where visitors can also go to see how salt is formed.
 
Today, villagers from more than 85 households still use this method to make salt at this ancient salt field.Yanding Village is a small fishing village in the city of Danzhou on Hainan’s west coast. Yanding’s ancient salt fields are located on top of volcanic rock, which makes for an amazing, picturesque landscape that is attracting more and more visitors every year.

 

 
The salt field is the one of the oldest remaining well-preserved salt fields in China, with a history of more than 1,200 years. Laid across the field are more than 1,300 salterns, also known as salt pans—vaguely hexagonal or circular troughs that look like like giant inkstones.
 
 
 
During the Tang Dynasty (618-907), Tan Zhengde, an immigrant to Danzhou from Putian, Fujian Province, noticed some white material on the tops of the rocks in shallow water. He picked up a pinch and put it to his tongue, and discovered it was sea salt.
 
 
 
The traditional way for making salt out of seawater was to boil away seawater in a cauldron until all that remained was salt. After Tan Zhengde’s discovery, the villagers began to chisel rocks on the seashore into ink slab-shaped troughs, creating a way to evaporate brine under the sun to make salt. With so many troughs, the village became a large salt field.
 
 
Today, villagers from more than 85 households still use this method to make salt at this ancient salt field.
 
SOURCE: WOS Team