Guangshan Temple Pagoda

Guangshan Temple Pagoda

Guangshan Temple Pagoda is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Guangshan Temple Pagoda is located in the urban area of Jinxiang County. The pagoda is a brick-and-stone structure built on a stone platform base, featuring an octagonal nine-story pavilion-style tower made of bricks, topped with an iron gourd-shaped finial. It stands 49 meters tall. During the recent restoration of Guangshan Temple Pagoda, 22 sets of silver artifacts from the Tang Dynasty were unearthed. According to preliminary assessments by experts from the Palace Museum and the Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Appraisal Committee, all are classified as national first-class relics. These include one hexagonal four-tiered Buddhist stupa, one reliquary coffin (divided into four parts), one set of the *Mahaparinirvana Sutra* from the Tang Dynasty’s Zhenguan era, one Buddhist scripture pillar, one lotus-shaped salt container with a lotus leaf lid, one complete tea grinder set, one square sieve set, one lotus-petal saucer cup, one phoenix-headed ewer, four plum blossom-shaped cups, one plum blossom-shaped plate, two lidded octagonal jars, one ten-curved lotus-shaped bowl, one nine-curved lotus-shaped bowl, two lotus-shaped cups, and one handle-lifted lidded jar. All these artifacts are made of silver using hammering techniques, with clear relief engravings on their surfaces. The main decorative motifs, sutra titles, bodhisattva images on the frontispiece, and the Vaisravana image on the back cover, as well as the bodhisattvas and deity figures flanking the reliquary coffin, are all gilded. The scripture pillar features six bodhisattva images, while the hexagonal four-tiered stupa is adorned mainly with bird-and-beast patterns, with a Buddha figure on each level and the Four Heavenly Kings on the surrounding decorations. The handle-lifted lidded jar has parrot decorations as its main motif, interspersed with elegant scrolling lotus and vine patterns. The cups and saucers have ring feet decorated with bead patterns, showing evident influence from Central Asian art styles. The tea grinder has pairs of leaping horses on its sides, and the upper part and both sides of the tea sieve feature celestial beings riding phoenixes, representing Taoist or traditional Han Chinese belief themes. The decorative patterns across all items are exquisitely crafted. Particularly precious is the “Zhenguan Era of the Great Tang” inscription in intaglio found on the back cover of the *Mahaparinirvana Sutra*. In addition, a collection of relics was also unearthed along with the artifacts.

These unearthed relics are of high grade, large quantity, and well-preserved condition. Especially rare is the *Mahaparinirvana Sutra* bearing the “Zhenguan Era of the Great Tang” inscription, which has no known parallel reports either domestically or internationally. They reflect, from one aspect, the flourishing Buddhist culture in Jinxiang County, demonstrating that during the Tang Dynasty, Jinxiang was already one of the most prosperous regions for Buddhist culture in Shandong and even across China. They provide extremely rare physical materials for the study of Tang Dynasty Buddhist culture and the development history of Buddhism in the Shandong region.

Conservation

Historical records indicate that the pagoda was originally built during the Tang Dynasty, but its current structure differs significantly from typical Tang-era pagodas. Other records suggest that the pagoda underwent major repairs during the Yuan Dynasty, with speculation that it may have been demolished and rebuilt at that time. The pagoda has eight sides and nine stories, with its eaves completely destroyed. During the Anti-Japanese War, the upper three levels were damaged by Japanese artillery fire. Major restoration work was carried out in the late 20th century, restoring the pagoda to its original form. It has been successively designated as a Jining Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Unit, a Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit, and in May 2013, it was listed as part of the seventh group of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units. In the “National Key Relics” list, the construction date of this pagoda is recorded as the Ming Dynasty.

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· First Batch of Jining Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units