Yuan Dynasty Stage

Yuan Dynasty Stage

In the northwest of the urban area, there are three surviving Yuan Dynasty stages, which form a rare group of ancient-style architecture in China and have been listed as a provincial-level key cultural relics protection unit. Weicun Niwangmiao Stage: Located within the Niwang Temple to the north of Weicun in Weicun Town. The temple was originally built in the 20th year of the Zhiyuan era of the Yuan Dynasty (1283), and currently features a main hall with three bays that enshrines the Ox King, Horse King, and Medicine King. The stage is square-shaped on plan, with a base 1.4 meters high and sides 7.55 meters long and wide. It is a single-eave hip-and-gable roof pavilion-style building. Dongyang Dongyue Temple Stage: Located within the Dongyue Temple in Dongyang Village, Tumen Town. It was originally built in the 4th year of the Zhizheng era of the Yuan Dynasty (1345), and currently consists of the stage and the Hall of the Goddess of the Earth. The stage faces south and is open at the front while enclosed on the other three sides. Its base is 1.75 meters high, and it measures 7.75 meters wide and 3.5 meters deep, being shallow vertically and broad horizontally, presenting a flat square shape. Wangqu Dongyue Temple Stage: Located within the Dongyue Temple in Wangqu Village, Wucun Town. The stage is divided into front and back sections: the front part has a flush gable and flush barrel-vaulted structure, which was added during renovations in the early years of the Republic of China; the rear part features a cross-hipped roof. Judging from its architectural form and structure, it was built in the early Yuan Dynasty. This group of Yuan Dynasty stages represents some of the earliest extant stages in China and serves as valuable physical artifacts in the history of Chinese opera.