Gaoji Relics Site

Gaoji Relics Site

The Gaoji Relics Site is a cultural heritage conservation unit of Shandong Province.

The Gaoji Relics Site in Ancailou Town is located in Gaoji Village, Ancailou Town, approximately 50 li southeast of Cao County, Shandong Province. Gaoji Village is home to the historic Dongyue Tianqi Temple, a sacred site of Taoism. In the tenth lunar month of 2013, the Dongyue Tianqi Temple revived its ancient temple fair activities and hosted the first Chrysanthemum Festival at the temple. The temple fair quickly became a major local attraction, drawing frequent visits from city and county officials as well as large crowds from surrounding areas. Recently, the author visited the Gaoji Relics Site out of admiration and saw that the Dongyue Tianqi Temple was filled with construction materials such as cement, sand, and timber. Workers were sweating under the scorching sun, working diligently and meticulously—stirring cement with concentration, quickly passing bricks and tiles, and carefully observing the bricklaying process. A dignified elderly man with graying hair, who seemed to be directing the work, hurried over to greet the visitor. Upon hearing the introduction from one of the workers, I learned that he was Zheng Shilun, the 72-year-old person in charge of the Dongyue Tianqi Temple. According to Zheng Shilun, the Dongyue Temple, also known as Tianqi Temple, was built in honor of the Eastern Peak Emperor, Huang Feihu.

Gaoji Relics Site: Located 25 kilometers southeast of Caoxian County town, at the northern end of Gaoji Village in Ancailou Town. It stretches 200 meters from east to west and 100 meters from north to south, covering an area of 20,000 square meters, roughly rectangular in shape. It contains cultural relics from the Neolithic Age to the Han Dynasty. During the Tang Dynasty, a “Tianqi Temple” was built on this site, which was renamed “Dongyue Temple” in the Ming Dynasty. It was destroyed before the founding of the People’s Republic of China, but the current temple courtyard still houses four steles recording its restorations. In August 1984, the Cao County People’s Government listed it as a county-level key cultural relics protection unit. In October 2013, it was designated as a provincial-level key cultural relics protection unit by the Shandong Provincial People’s Government.

Gaoji Village: Gaoji Village... More detailed information about Gaoji Village++

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units