Yong'an Dashige Pavilion

Yong'an Dashige Pavilion

Yong'an Dashige Pavilion is a national AAA-level tourist attraction and a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level.

Dashige Pavilion is located within the ruins of Yong'an Ancient City in Shankou Township, about 80 kilometers east of Hepu County in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Yong'an City borders the Beibu Gulf and was one of the important coastal defense posts of ancient China used to resist foreign invasions. Dashige Pavilion, commonly known as "Four-Pavilion Tower," was built in the fourth year of the Wanli era during the Ming Dynasty (1576). It is a Buddhist structure in Yong'an City that originally housed many Buddha statues. It earned its name from enshrining Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy.

The pavilion consists of two open-style towers connected together, centered around a four-pillar hall at the rear. It is three bays wide and six bays deep, with no corridors or courtyards dividing the space. The facade of the pavilion has two levels: the upper level features a traditional design enclosed with wooden boards, complete with doors and windows, and a wooden floor; the lower level is an open, unprotected space. The entire framework is connected using mortise-and-tenon joints. The column tops slant upward with three-tiered bracket arms supporting the outer eaves. The pavilion has a double-eaved hip-and-gable roof, each with nine ridges adorned with exquisitely carved patterns, including reliefs of phoenixes, dragons playing with pearls, birds, trees, and exotic flowers and plants, all of which convey a strong sense of daily life.

Although built during the Ming Dynasty, Dashige Pavilion employs many early architectural techniques—for example, some column tops are split into spindle-shaped columns, column bases are carved with simple yet classic lotus designs, corner pillars tilt slightly outward, and the beam frames retain two-lobed camel humps, struts, and intercolumnar brackets. Its construction features and methods reflect the legacy of Song and Yuan dynasty architecture, making it an important physical resource for studying ancient southern Chinese architecture. (National Cultural Heritage Administration)

Shankou Town: Located in the eastern part of Hepu County, Shankou Town sits at the junction of Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan provinces. National Highway 325 and the newly built Chongqing-Zhanjiang Expressway, a major artery of Southwest China, run through the town. About 14 kilometers away, two ports—Yingluo Port and Shatian Port—are situated on the eastern and western flanks respectively. Blessed with favorable regional conditions and highly convenient sea and land transportation, the town serves as a vital transportation hub connecting "Two Guangs" (Guangdong and Guangxi) and even the broader Southwest region. The town governs 15 village committees, one neighborhood committee, and has a total population of 73,000, covering an area of 123.6 square kilometers.

Environmental Resources: Shankou Town is rich in resources, with high-quality kaolin exceeding 20 million tons... More detailed information about Shankou Town++

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level