Taiping Pagoda

　　Era: Song Dynasty

　　Address: Qianshan County, Anqing City, Anhui Province

　　According to old records: “Taiping Pagoda was first built during the Xianhe era of the Jin Dynasty (326–334 AD). In front of the temple stood Taiping Pagoda, in front of the pagoda was the Zhenwu Hall, and behind the hall were the Jade Emperor Pavilion and the stone ornamental pillars.”

　　Taiping Pagoda is a Song Dynasty brick-and-wood structure in the pavilion style. The pagoda has seven stories, and measures 35 meters in height from the mouth of the inverted-bowl top. With the newly restored spire included, the total height reaches 43 meters. It features a flat octagonal form that slightly tapers with each ascending level. Each floor has four doors, alternating between real and false. The interior is hollow, with 11 floors of wooden flooring held up by crossbeams, giving it a distinctive structure. The inner walls contain staircases that spiral upward along the inner wall, allowing passage through floors and corridors. The inner and outer walls are adorned with niches of varying sizes, housing over a thousand exquisitely carved brick Buddha statues in diverse expressions. The outer wall is equipped with eaves resembling those of wooden structures, with square tiles used as rafter ends and flat bricks as roof tiles. The arched eaves and upturned corners feature long rectangular stone strips laid at the angles, with their front ends carved into vivid dragon heads, giving the pagoda a majestic and dynamic presence.