The An'guo Temple Stone Pagoda in Jiaxing

The An'guo Temple Stone Pagoda in Jiaxing

The An'guo Temple Stone Pagoda is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Located in the northwest corner of the Yanguan Tide-Watching Scenic Area in Haining City. There are three pagodas in total, divided into the base, body, and top, constructed in the 2nd, 4th, and 6th years of the Tang Dynasty’s Huichang era, and the 6th year of the Xiantong era, respectively. Except for the top, which is made of bluestone, the rest are crafted from white marble.

The base is a carved stone Sumeru pedestal, 0.25 meters high and 1.1 meters in diameter, sitting on a square platform that was added in later periods. The body is constructed from two pieces of white marble, forming an octagonal column with unequal width on each side.

The body has an octagonal plan, with a faux wooden eave structure. It is the earliest existing example of a stone pagoda mimicking wooden architectural techniques. The upper block starts from the east side, with eighteen large regular script characters reading “The Tao Te Ching of the Supreme Mysterious and Primordial Emperor, Annotated by Emperor Xuanzong of the Great Tang Dynasty” inscribed vertically from left to right, occupying three sides. Below these, there is an imperial edict issued by Emperor Xuanzong on December 14 of the 20th year of the Kaiyuan era, promoting the Tao Te Ching. The edict mandated that “every household, both scholar and commoner, keep a copy and study it to understand its essence.” The lower part of the pagoda body is engraved with all eighty-one chapters of Laozi’s Tao Te Ching in sequence. The upper end of the pagoda body features a carved stone lotus pedestal, atop which sits the pagoda top.

The pagoda top is partially damaged. Originally carved from a single large piece of bluestone, it stands 38 centimeters high, with a roof-like octagonal form that matches the shape of the pagoda body. From the flat octagonal top emerge eight ridges, with tile lines carved between them. Below are eave boards, flying eaves, and eave brackets. Under the corner beams is a “one-dou-three-sheng” bracket set supporting the structure.

The entire pagoda stands elegantly upright. Its design is simple yet refined and graceful. The roof-like octagonal pagoda top provides valuable insight into Tang Dynasty architecture.

Admission Fee

8 RMB

Location

Ningyuan Road, Dingqiao Town, Haining City, Zhejiang Province

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units