天柱山联合国教科文组织世界地质公园位于中国安徽省潜山市境内，北纬30°35′17"～30°48′41"，东经116°16′04"～116°33′41"。西北襟连大别山，东南濒临长江，面积413.14km²。主峰海拔1489.8m，独立高耸、如柱擎天，故名“天柱”。公园位于华北、扬子两大板块之间大别造山带的东段和郯-庐断裂带的复合部位。这里是全球范围内规模最大、剥露最深、出露最好、超高压矿物和岩石组合最为丰富的超高压变质带的重要地段，记录了大陆板块碰撞、俯冲、折返的壮观地质历史过程，成为研究大陆动力学最典型地区之一。以郯庐断裂带上最美花岗岩地貌闻名于世，尤以崩塌堆垒地貌，成为全国同类景观代表而赢得“天柱山型”花岗岩地貌的冠名美誉，自然风光雄奇灵秀。园区内40多个地点发现了60余种脊椎动物化石，具有亚洲的地方性特色，在研究古新世哺乳动物演化方面具有独特的地位，被公认为“亚洲哺乳动物的发源地之一，古脊椎动物化石的宝地”。

天柱山历史悠久，文化积淀深厚。著名的新石器时代的“薛家岗文化”遗址即见证了6000多年前我们的先人在此繁衍生息及所创造的文明。春秋时期属皖国封地，天柱山又名皖山，安徽省简称“皖”即源于此。公元前106年汉武帝刘彻登临天柱山，封为南岳(后隋文帝改封衡山为南岳)。1982年以来，相继被批准为国家级风景名胜区、国家森林公园、国家AAAAA级旅游景区。2005年成为国家地质公园，2011年入选世界地质公园网络成员。

Tianzhushan UNESCO Global Geopark

Tianzhushan UNESCO Global Geopark is located in Anqing City, Anhui Province, P.R. China. Its geographic coordinates are 30°35′17″ ~ 30°48′41″N in northern latitude and 116°16′04″ ~ 116°33′41E in eastern longitude. It is connected with Dabieshan in the northwest and bordering on the Yangtze River in the southeast, with a total area of 413.14km². The main peak is 1489.8m high in elevation, like a gigantic pillar propping up the heaven, so it is called “Tianzhu” (which literally means “Heavenly Pillar” in English). Tianzhushan Geopark is located in the eastern part of Dabieshan Orogenic Belt between North China and Yangtze Paleo-Plates and the southern part of Tancheng-Lujiang Fault Zone. It is currently internationally recognized as an important area of UHP metamorphic belt, because of its largest scale, deepest denudation, best exposure and most abundant UHP minerals and rock combinations in the world, recording the amazing geological process of the subduction, collision and turn-back of continental plates, therefore, the Tianzhushan area is one of the most typical areas for the studies of continental dynamics; besides, Tianzhushan Geopark is world-famous for its most beautiful granite landforms in the Tancheng-Lujiang Fault Zone, in particular the cave landscape formed by landslides and collapsed stack of granite has been named as a landscape with the “Tianzhushan type” collapsed and stacked stones; in addition, more than 50 species of vertebrate fossils have been discovered in more than 20 sites within Tianzhushan Geopark, with Asian endemic characteristics, which makes Tianzhushan have a unique position in research of the evolution of Paleocene mammals, and be recognized as “one of the places of origin of Asian mammals and a treasure land of paleontological vertebrate fossils”.

Tianzhushan has a long history with profound culture. Famous Xuejiagang Culture relics in Neolithic Period witness the life, reproduction and the culture created by our ancestors 6000 years ago. In Spring and Autumn Period, Tianzhushan was subordinated to the State of Wan, so it is called Wanshan, and that’s why Anhui province is briefly called Wan. In 106 BC, Liu Che, Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty, ascended Tianzhushan and referred it as Sacred Southern Mountain (Emperor Wen of Sui Dynasty altered Hengshan as Southern Mountain afterwards). Since 1982, Tianzhushan has been successively ratified as National Scenic Spot, National Forest Park and National AAAAA Tourist Attraction. Tianzhushan became National Geopark in 2005, and joined in GGN in 2011.