HEFEI — A massive mine of inkstone materials has been discovered in East China’s Anhui province.

The mine, located in Shexian county, has an estimated inkstone storage of more than 1 million cubic meters, according to a geological team of the Anhui Provincial Bureau of Geology and Mineral Exploration.

The raw materials usually take up to 1 billion years of geological changes to take form, according to the team’s chief engineer Wang De’en. Previously, similar mines have been found in Shexian, although their scales were much smaller.

The inkstone raw materials have a fine texture and are “as smooth as baby skin,” Wang said. They can be made into high-quality inkstones, he said.

“Mining will be conducted in accordance with laws and regulations,” he said.

Shexian county is famous in China for its inkstones. Shexian inkstones are one of the four best types of inkstones in the country.