Datong Drum Tower

Datong Drum Tower

The Datong Drum Tower is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Datong Drum Tower was originally built during the Ming Dynasty and underwent renovations during the Shunzhi and Qianlong eras of the Qing Dynasty. It is one of the best-preserved and largest Ming and Qing dynasty drum towers in Shanxi and even across China. The tower has three stories and features a hip-and-gable roof with a cruciform plan, with each facade spanning and extending three bays. The structure has doors on all four sides, surrounded by corridors and railings, and a wooden staircase on the ground floor. During the Ming and Qing periods, the drum tower served as the city’s timekeeping and alarm center, equipped with a “bronze clepsydra” and “fixed-hour drum” for measuring time. Four plaques hang from each side of the tower: on the south side, the upper plaque reads “Drum Tower” and the lower one “Resounding in All Directions”; on the east, the upper plaque is “Singing in the Wind” and the lower “Clouds Part at Dawn”; on the west, the upper plaque says “Uplifting Virtue” and the lower “Harmonious Sounds Celebrate Prosperity”; and on the north, the upper plaque is “Timely Harmony” and the lower “Moonlit Toad among Clouds.”

The tower has three stories and features a hip-and-gable roof with a cruciform plan, with each facade spanning and extending three bays. The structure has doors on all four sides, surrounded by corridors and railings, and a wooden staircase on the ground floor. During the Ming and Qing periods, the drum tower served as the city’s timekeeping and alarm center, equipped with a “bronze clepsydra” and “fixed-hour drum.” The “bronze clepsydra” originated in the Song Dynasty and was crafted with exceptional precision.

On October 7, 2019, the Datong Drum Tower was included in the eighth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Admission & Opening Hours

10 RMB (Admission to the Yungang Grottoes includes free entry to the Drum Tower)

Transportation

You can reach the site by taking bus routes 17 or 27.

Opening Hours:

Open all day

Address: Intersection at the southern end of Danan Street, Urban District, Datong City

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Shanxi Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Eighth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units