Wenzhou Tianning Temple

Wenzhou Tianning Temple

Wenzhou Tianning Temple is a cultural relic protection unit of Wenzhou City.

Tianning Temple is located within the 118th Hospital in Lucheng District, Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province. The main hall faces east and is five bays wide, featuring a double-eaved hip-and-gable roof structure. It sits on a granite platform with a stepped ramp at the front. The eaves columns are made of blue stone cylinders, inscribed with couplets, while the central and golden columns are square granite pillars also engraved with inscriptions. Each column rests on a square base adorned with bas-relief patterns. The central bay has a depth of five columns and thirteen rafters, with a roof structure employing a combination of raised beams and interlocking brackets. The interior features a coffered ceiling; below the ceiling are crescent beams, while above it are framework beams. The roof includes a main ridge with decorative ridge beasts, an openwork floral ridge, and a central flame ornament. Lotus designs are embossed in relief at the center, and there are large dragon ridge ornaments on either side of the ridge.

Tianning Temple was initially built in the third year of the Tianfu era during the Later Jin Dynasty of the Five Dynasties (938 AD). Currently, only one hall remains, built in the architectural style of the Qing Dynasty. Tianning Temple was one of the four renowned temples in the old urban area of Wenzhou, known as “Outside: Protect-the-Nation and Tianping Temples; Inside: Jiafu and Tianning Temples.” In 1985, it was listed as part of the second batch of cultural relic protection units in Wenzhou. At the time of its listing, it was the only surviving physical structure among the former “four renowned temples.” Despite undergoing multiple reconstructions, it has maintained a strong reputation locally.

Protection Level: County (City/District)-level Cultural Relic Protection Unit

Period: Qing Dynasty

Date of Designation: August 21, 1985

Category: Ancient Architecture

Protected Area: The boundary extends 0 to five meters outward from the existing platform on all four sides.

Building Control Zone: The eastern boundary extends outward from the platform to Haitan Mountain; the other three sides extend ten meters outward from the platform.