Fact check: Image of Buddhist temple in China has been altered
The claim: An image shows a Buddhist temple with Mount Fuji in the background
An image of a temple on a dramatic precipice has drawn the attention of people on Facebook.
The image shows two house-like structures connected by a stone bridge on top of a mountain spire. In the background is a giant mountain with a cloud covering its summit.
"Mount Fanjing Buddhist temple, with the Fujiyama in the background," reads a Feb. 13 Facebook post, which was shared over 100 times in four days.
Fujiyama is another name for Mount Fuji, Japan's tallest mountain.
Follow us on Facebook! Like our page to get updates throughout the day on our latest debunks
The two apparent houses pictured in the post are part of a recognized Buddhist temple – but they're located in China, not Japan. While the temple location is surrounded by tall mountains, Mount Fuji is not one of them. The image appears to be digitally altered.
Paste BN reached out to the Facebook user who posted the image for comment.
Image shows temple in China
The temple pictured in the post is one of several sacred Buddhist temples in Fanjingshan, a mountain reserve located in the Wuling mountain range in China's Guizhou province.
The mountain, also known as Mount Fanjing, was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018. It is home to almost 50 endemic plant species and almost 250 endemic animal species.
Fanjingshan temple sits at one of the mountain's three summits: the New Golden Summit, also known as the Red Clouds Golden Summit, The Telegraph reported in 2018.
The vertical ascent to the temple, which can't be seen in great detail in the Facebook image, brings travelers about 330 feet above the surrounding mountaintops, The Atlantic wrote in 2019. Images featured in the article and a UNESCO photo gallery show the temple is surrounded by tall peaks.
However, none appear as big or tall as the mountain shown in the Facebook image.
Fact check: Solar eclipse image is digital art, not from International Space Station
The origin of the mountain seen in the background is unclear. The mountain matches one seen in an animated post on Pinterest and Twitter.
However, one thing is clear: The mountain can't be Mount Fuji, which is located in Japan – almost 2,000 miles from Mount Fanjing.
Our rating: Altered
Based on our research, we rate ALTERED an image that claims to show a Buddhist temple with Mount Fuji in the background. The temple in the image is located in China, whereas Mount Fuji is in Japan. The image of the mountain has been edited into the picture of the temple.
Our fact-check sources:
- Britannica, accessed Feb. 16, Mount Fuji
- UNESCO, accessed Feb. 16, Fanjingshan Biosphere Reserve, China
- UNESCO, July 2, 2018, Four sites added to UNESCO's World Heritage List
- UNESCO, accessed Feb. 16, Fanjingshan
- The Telegraph, July 9, 2018, Why you should visit Fanjingshan, China's extraordinary holy mountain
- The Atlantic, April 10, 2019, A Photo Visit to Mount Fanjing
- UNESCO, accessed Feb. 16, Fanjingshan gallery
- Pinterest, Feb. 1, Post
- Amazing Nature, Jan. 2, Tweet
Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here.
Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.