Ronghua Temple

Ronghua Temple

Ronghua Temple is a cultural heritage site protected at the provincial level in Shanxi Province.

Ronghua Temple

Ronghua Temple (listed in the third batch of provincial-level protected sites)

Era: Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties

Address: West of Dongweima Village, 10 km south of Heshun County

The founding date of the temple is unknown. According to inscriptions within the temple, a monastery already existed here in the eighth year of the Yuanyou era of the Song and Yuan period (1093), and it was renovated in the forty-second year of the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty (1545) and the thirty-fourth year of the Qianlong era of the Qing Dynasty (1769). The existing structures date from the Ming and Qing dynasties.

The temple faces south and is laid out as a traditional quadrangle courtyard, covering an area of 1,000 square meters. Along the central axis from south to north are the mountain gate and the main hall. Bell and drum towers stand on either side of the gate. Five side halls are located on each side of the courtyard. The main hall was rebuilt in the forty-second year of the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty (1563). It stands on a stone platform 0.65 meters high, has a width of three bays, a depth of six rafters, and features a single-eave hanging gable roof. Inside the hall are three stone Buddha statues arranged in a row. All the statues are standing figures made of sandstone, and their sculptural style and techniques are believed to date from the Northern and Southern Dynasties period. The temple also preserves one Ming Dynasty stele and ten damaged stelae from the Qing Dynasty.

Further reading:

· Third Batch of Provincial-Level Cultural Heritage Sites in Shanxi Province