Fenyang Wenfeng Pagoda

Fenyang Wenfeng Pagoda

Fenyang Wenfeng Pagoda is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Wenfeng Pagoda

Wenfeng Pagoda (Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units)

Era: Ming to Qing

Address: Jianchang Village, Yangcheng Township, Fenyang City

According to the Kangxi-era "Fenyang County Annals," this pagoda was built through public fundraising led by Zhu Zhijun, a native of Fenyang who passed the imperial examination in the second year of the Tianqi era (1623) during the Ming Dynasty (he later served as an academic official at the Imperial College during both the Ming and Qing Dynasties). The pagoda is an octagonal, thirteen-story brick tower, standing 84.93 meters tall, making it the tallest surviving brick pagoda in Shanxi.

The pagoda has an octagonal floor plan, with a blue stone Sumeru pedestal, and the body is constructed of brick. It features a hollow core structure. The pagoda tapers upward from the base to the top, consisting of 13 levels, with each level adorned with projecting eaves made of carved brick brackets and "dougong" (interlocking wooden brackets), forming cornice layers. The upturned corners of each level are similarly styled.

Fenyang Wenfeng Pagoda is a brick structure with an octagonal floor plan, covering an area of 217.8 square meters. The exterior levels are separated by eaves made of carved brick brackets, "flying rafters," and "dougong," totaling 13 stories. Each level originally featured sculptures of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals, which have now been destroyed. In 1924, during an earthquake, the northeast corner of the 13th level was damaged. The inner chamber has a square floor plan, and the levels are connected by a spiral corridor-style stairway. The outer wall and the inner chamber walls form a double-shell structural design. The base is a Sumeru pedestal built from stone slabs, which are carved with patterns of "bamboo joints," "upward-facing lotus," and "scrolling vines." The main body is constructed from blue bricks. The entire pagoda contains 512 sets of "dougong." The eave corners rise slightly, with very short overhangs. The taper between the upper and lower levels of the pagoda is pronounced, giving the structure a steeply ascending silhouette.

In May 2006, Wenfeng Pagoda, as an ancient architectural structure from the Ming to Qing periods, was approved by the State Council to be included in the Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units