Metal casting begins on China's first conjoined statue of four Guanyins, Tuesday, December 18, 2007.

China's first conjoined bronze statue of four Guanyins is currently undergoing its metal casting phase in Luoyang, central China's Henan Province.

Local news website Dahe.cn reported that the bronze statue contains four goddesses: an Indian goddess; a goddess that hails from the Tang Dynasty; an ancient Chinese regime which lasted from 618 to 907; a Guanyin that grants babies to wishful devotees; and an august-looking goddess.

The 23-meter-high statue has cost some 16 million yuan (over US$2.1 million) to build.

(CRI December 19, 2007)