Shangtun Medicine King Temple

Shangtun Medicine King Temple

Shangtun Medicine King Temple is a cultural heritage site protected by the Lingbao Municipal Government.

Shangtun Medicine King Temple, located in Shangtun Village, Yuling Town, Lingbao City, was designated as part of the fourth batch of municipal cultural heritage protection units by the Lingbao Municipal People's Government in 2002.

The temple was originally built in the 12th year of the Qianlong reign (1747), initially consisting of a main hall, an offering hall, and a rear hall. Due to years of neglect, the main and offering halls collapsed after the founding of the People’s Republic of China, and the main hall was reconstructed in 1960. The existing rear hall is the original structure. The Medicine King Temple was built to commemorate Sun Simiao, a renowned physician of the Sui and Tang dynasties. A native of Shaanxi, Sun Simiao was highly accomplished in medicine and pharmacology and was revered as the “Medicine King.” Legend has it that Sun Simiao once gathered and processed medicinal herbs here to treat local people. To honor this great medical and pharmaceutical scholar, local residents raised funds to build the Medicine King Temple. The current structure features a flush-gable roof, spans three bays, measures 12.7 meters in length, and 8.37 meters in depth. It is adorned with a brick-carved floral ridge, with decorative animal heads on both sides and a front gable. In front of the front gable are cantilevered ridges, which feature ridge beasts.

The roof is tiled with flat tiles. The beams and brackets feature camel hump-shaped blocks, and the entire wooden framework is painted. On either side of the entrance are stone lions, believed to be from the same period as the temple. The lions sit in a crouching position—one male and one female—each wearing a copper bell around its neck and adorned with colorful ribbons. The inner sides of the lions’ heads face each other as if calling out. Beneath the lions’ pedestals is an inscription reading “the 12th year of Qianlong,” which is of significant reference value for the study of early Qing dynasty stone carving art.

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