Ruins of the Western Great Buddha Pagoda

Western Great Buddha Pagoda Ruins

The Western Great Buddha Pagoda Ruins are a cultural relic protection unit of Tianjin Municipality.

Western Great Buddha Pagoda Ruins

Age: Tang and Liao dynasties

Address: The ruins are located 500 meters west of Xidafota Village, Guanzhuang Town, Jixian County, and 100 meters east of the Guanzhuang Nursing Home.

Category: Ancient ruins

The main body of the Western Great Buddha Pagoda collapsed long ago. The site is now a circular earthen mound with a diameter of about 40 meters, standing approximately 6 meters above the current ground level. Near the center but slightly to the south of the circular mound, there remains a conical rammed-earth platform about 1.5 meters high, with large quantities of blue brick fragments scattered on the ground.

In November 2006, the Tianjin Cultural Heritage Conservation Center conducted an emergency excavation at the Western Great Buddha Pagoda Ruins, covering an area of 300 square meters. The excavation revealed that the central foundation of the pagoda was an octagonal rammed-earth platform with sides measuring 3.6 meters. This platform was encased in blue bricks approximately 3.8 meters thick. Unfortunately, due to years of brick theft, most of the bricks are no longer present, and the remaining brick wall measures about 8 meters per side. Based on the stratigraphic relationships of various remains, it is evident that the pagoda underwent at least three phases of construction. Judging from the excavated blue bricks, its construction dates back to the Tang and Liao periods. From the foundation of the Western Great Buddha Pagoda, its octagonal brick walls are each about 8 meters wide—nearly double the size of those of the Guanyin Tower of Dule Temple—and its square brick base is close to 30 meters per side, larger than that of the Famen Temple Pagoda in Shaanxi. It is one of the largest brick pagoda foundations in northern China.

Its interior consists of a rammed-earth pagoda core, with external brick cladding—an unusual construction method not seen in other surviving Tang and Liao Buddhist pagodas in China. It holds significant importance in filling research gaps and setting precedents in the study of Buddhist pagoda architecture in China.

Located at the southern edge of the Buddhist heritage sites of Mount Pan, and predating temples such as Qianxiang and Shaolin, the pagoda sits at the convergence point between the ancient county seat of Jixian and the ancient settlement of Bangjun. Its unique geographical position plays an irreplaceable role in studying the spread of Buddhism in northern China and the gradual emergence of Mount Pan as a sacred Buddhist site in eastern Beijing.

Xidafota Village: Xidafota Village…… Detailed information about Xidafota Village++

Further reading:

· Fourth Batch of Tianjin Cultural Relic Protection Units