The Zigzag Pavilion

The Zigzag Pavilion

The Zigzag Pavilion is a cultural relic protection unit of Ezhou City.

When Su Shi was exiled to Huangzhou, he often visited the Western Hills in Wuchang. Among the many relics he left on the Western Hills, the Zigzag Pavilion, Dongpo Cake, Bodhisattva Spring, and his poetry are particularly renowned. The Zigzag Pavilion is located on Wuwang Xian of Jiuzhe Ridge in the Western Hills. Legend has it that Sun Quan built a thousand-man warship called the "Chang’an," which was being tested on the Yangtze River when it encountered a strong wind and was broken by huge waves. He then climbed up from Fankou, cut through the mountain to open a path and filled in a mountain pass, naming it "Wuwang Xian." A small pavilion was built there to worship it. The original pavilion was later destroyed. After visiting the site, Su Shi restored the pavilion and named it the Zigzag Pavilion. His younger brother Su Zhe wrote "Record of the Zigzag Pavilion," and the structure has undergone several cycles of destruction and rebuilding. The current Zigzag Pavilion was reconstructed during the Qing Dynasty by Zhang Zhidong, who also inscribed "Record of the Zigzag Pavilion" inside the pavilion. On the front of the pavilion, a couplet is written on the two pillars: "Bugles and drums echo across the river; in those years, the short boat came frequently, but thanks to the poems, the traveler’s mood was soothed; guests and officials arrive in their straw shoes, and when they one day return to their high offices, their dreams will still long for these serene excursions."