Tianzhou Ancient Pagoda

Tianzhou Ancient Pagoda

Tianzhou Ancient Pagoda is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Tianzhou Pagoda, also known as Tianzhou Ancient Pagoda and commonly referred to as Yao Fu Pagoda, stands in a grove of willows one kilometer east of Yao Fu Town, Pingluo County, Ningxia. It is located within Huangqi Chan Temple and is about 20 kilometers from Pingluo County town. The pagoda is 38 meters tall, has a hexagonal floor plan, and is a nine-story brick pavilion-style structure. The ground floor has one door on the north and one on the south for access. The base of the pagoda is 100 meters long from north to south and 80 meters wide, with a height of 4 meters. Each of the pagoda’s nine levels features six doors and six corner projections, totaling 48 doors. Each door is carved with a Buddhist niche, amounting to 48 niches in all. A small bell hangs from each of the 48 corner projections. The entire pagoda, from bottom to top, is constructed with finely jointed green bricks. The roof is covered with black glazed tiles and shaped like a cone. The base level incorporates line-engraved art, featuring carvings on the green bricks such as upturned eaves, corner projections, door lintels, goose-neck brackets, landscapes, figures, and birds. The craftsmanship is highly skilled, and the carvings are exquisitely detailed, making it a rare artistic masterpiece in the Ningxia Autonomous Region. Below the eaves of the ground floor are carvings that realistically imitate wooden architectural elements such as tile ridges, rafter ends, horizontal beams, arches, and hanging lotus petal decorations. There are also carvings of Buddha statues and narrative scenes. These brick carvings are delicate, expertly crafted, and exceptionally beautiful, demonstrating superior artistry. The pagoda's structure is novel and unique in style, rarely seen among all ancient pagodas in Ningxia.

Yao Fu Town: A town under the jurisdiction of Pingluo County. Established as Yao Fu Township in 1955, it was reorganized as a commune in 1958, restored as Yao Fu Township in 1982, and upgraded to a town in 1985. Located in the southwestern part of the county, it is 19 kilometers from the county seat. Covering an area of 54 square kilometers, it has a population of 11,000. The town administers eight village committees — Yao Fu, Shaqu, Yongsheng, Dengta, Shuguang, Yaoqu, Gaorong, and Xiaodianzi — as well as the Yao Fu residential committee. The Huinong and Tanglai canals run through the town. The main agricultural products are wheat, corn, and rice. The site includes the Western Xia Tianzhou Ancient Pagoda. The Gaorong West Water Hollow and ongoing afforestation efforts will connect with Sand Lake to form one of Ningxia’s major tourist areas. …… More details about Yao Fu Town++