Lin Yingqi Meritorious Deed Memorial Archway

Lin Yingqi Meritorious Deed Memorial Archway

The Lin Yingqi Meritorious Deed Memorial Archway is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

In Xianju, there is a locally renowned archway — the Lin Yingqi Meritorious Deed Memorial Archway — built by the imperial court to honor Lin Yingqi from Duandao, Xianju. In January 2017, this archway was approved as a provincial-level cultural relics protection unit by the People’s Government of Zhejiang Province.

The archway stands 10.5 meters tall, with a total width of 11.34 meters and a depth of 2.7 meters. It faces south and was constructed using stone materials in the style of a four-pillar, three-bay pavilion-style hip-and-gable roof. Due to slow land subsidence over the past five or six hundred years in the area where the archway is located, cracks in the eastern section of the structure have gradually deepened, posing a risk of collapse. It underwent one restoration several decades ago, and we are now carrying out its second restoration.

Looking carefully through the scaffolding made of steel pipes, you can see that on both sides of the dougong (bracket sets) in the central bay of the archway, there are stone plaques inscribed with the characters “恩荣” (Imperial Favor). On the central part of the lintel on both sides, there are bold regular-script characters reading “攀龙鳞” (Climbing the Dragon’s Scales) and “附凤翼” (Attaching to the Phoenix’s Wings).

According to historical records, Lin Yingqi, styled Birén and also known as Jieshan, was born in 1506 during the Zhengde era of Emperor Wuzong of the Ming Dynasty, in Duandao Village, Eastern Xianju. Endowed with remarkable intelligence from a young age, he read extensively and had a passion for poetry. In 1535, he passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi (advanced scholar). In October of the same year, he was appointed as the magistrate of Wujiang County in Jiangsu. In August 1551, Lin Yingqi was named Tongzhi (vice magistrate) of Huizhou in Guangdong, taking charge of the local administration. During his more than two years in Huizhou, he devoted himself wholeheartedly to improving people’s livelihoods, conducted undercover visits to investigate unjust cases, and spared no effort in establishing academies—his governance achievements were outstanding. In 1553, the imperial court appointed him as the Jiangnan Censor to inspect major civil affairs in the region. At that time, Jiangxi was suffering severely from banditry, with widespread chaos and people living in misery. After returning to the capital, Lin Yingqi repeatedly submitted memorials to the throne, exposing how local officials in Jiangxi were colluding with bandits to harm the people — his “Four Memorials.” Eventually, Emperor Jiajing resolved to appoint Lin Yingqi as the Jiangxi Circuit Censor. During his tenure, wielding the imperial sword, he supervised coordinated efforts between prefectures and counties to suppress the bandits. After two years of dedicated governance, the bandit problem in Jiangxi was completely eradicated. The emperor was highly pleased and, in the same year, bestowed a “Imperial Favor” memorial archway, which was erected in Lin Yingqi’s hometown.

On October 7, 2019, the Lin Yingqi Meritorious Deed Memorial Archway was included in the eighth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Further Reading:

· Eighth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units