The Jingle Palace Stele

The Jingle Palace Stele

The Jingle Palace Stele is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Jingle Palace was located on the Jiaofu Plain, about fifty meters south of the Wu Mausoleum and north of Jiuxian Village, approximately four kilometers east of Qufu City in Shandong Province.

During the Song Dynasty, Qufu once again entered a period of great prestige. In addition to bestowing repeated honors upon Confucius and his descendants, the rulers of the Song Dynasty also began to pay attention to the site of the birthplace of the Yellow Emperor, which had lain dormant for four thousand years. After compromising with the Liao in Yan, Emperor Zhenzong of Song always sought to awe the northern tribes with the cultural superiority of the Huaxia people. As a result, he promoted the equal reverence of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, enshrined Mount Tai, honored Confucius, tolerated Buddhism, devoted himself to Taoism, staged several “Heavenly Scripture” events, dreamed of deities, and honored the Yellow Emperor as the founding ancestor of the Zhao clan. Hence, in the fifth year of the Dazhong Xiangfu era, he summoned his ministers to deliberate and issued an edict to construct the Jingle Palace in both the capital and Shouqiu in Qufu. The Jingle Palace in the capital was dedicated to the worship of the Yellow Emperor and the deified ancestors of the Zhao imperial lineage, while the one in Qufu was dedicated to the ancestral Yellow Emperor and the Holy Mother.

The Jingle Palace suffered from a fire during the Tian Sheng era of Emperor Renzong of Song but was soon restored. It underwent multiple renovations during the Zhenghe era of Emperor Huizong of Song, the Dading era of Emperor Shizong of Jin, by the Mongols (in 1250 AD), and in the seventh year of the Zhizheng era under Emperor Shundi of Yuan (1347 AD). There are no further historical records of the Jingle Palace afterward. It is believed that the palace was destroyed either in the late Yuan Dynasty or early Ming Dynasty. The current ruins are buried underground, with only two original stone steles remaining above ground. In May 2013, the Jingle Palace Stele was designated by the State Council as part of the seventh batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

The officials appointed to the Jingle Palace included the Commissioner for Constructing the Jingle Palace, the Deputy Commissioner for Constructing the Jingle Palace, and the Clerk for Ceremonial Maintenance at the Jingle Palace, who were primarily responsible for construction, renovation, and maintenance—usually held by senior officials. Higher-ranking positions included the Commissioner of the Jingle Palace, whose duties generally involved presiding over sacrifices, rituals, and ceremonial offerings. These roles were usually filled by individuals of high learning, status, and experience, to reflect imperial favor. Later positions such as the Judge of the Jingle Palace were akin to day-to-day management roles. Given the highly important and unique status of the Jingle Palace during the Song Dynasty, those appointed to these high offices were also prominent figures in the imperial court.

Jingle Palace Stele: (1) Location: Jiuxian Second Street, Shuyuan Subdistrict, Qufu City.

(2) Protected Area: Within five meters outside the boundary wall of the Shouqiu Compound.

(3) Construction Control Zone: A buffer zone extending 100 meters outward from the protected area.

Shuyuan Subdistrict: Located in the old urban district, Shuyuan Subdistrict hosts over 100 municipal and district-level institutions and has a population of more than 50,000 residents. Through coordination by the District Culture and Sports Bureau, the city library extended its services by establishing its first service point in the Shuyuan Community.

Shuyuan Subdistrict was established as a district in 1965, renamed Dongfeng Commune in 1968, reverted to its original name Shuyuan Commune in 1980, became a district again in 1984, transformed into a township in 1986, upgraded to a town in 1997, and finally became a subdistrict in 2000.

-

Origin

Shuyuan Subdistrict derives its name from the Zhushu Academy.

-

Historical Sites

… Detailed information about Shuyuan Subdistrict++

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Municipal-Level Cultural Relics Protection Units in Jining City

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units