China's most famous Buddhist mountain will file documents for UNESCO's World Cultural Heritage in February next year, according to local officials of Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province.

Mount Wutai, located in north China's Shanxi Province, is home to 47 Buddhist temples and more than 3,000 Buddhist monks and nuns.

It was designated as one of China's four shortlisted candidates for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) World Cultural Heritage contest in 2006 earlier this month.

The other three candidates were Karst scenery of south China, Mountain Cangshan of Yunnan Province and Mount Sanqing of Jiangxi Province.

Wutai is one of the five most eminent Buddhist sacred places in the world and one of the four most famous Buddhist mountains in China. It boasts over 140,000 Buddhist statues and a large number of Buddhist classics and frescoes in its 45 ancient temples.

Editor: Wing