Wenfeng Pagoda

Situated in the Xuchang Museum at south-eastern corner of the city, the imposing Wenfeng Pagoda stands high into the sky. As one of the top ten sceneries in Xuchang, the pagoda ranks as the best brick pagoda in He'nan Province and the State Key Relics Protection Unit.

In 1614 A.D. of the Ming Dynasty Zheng Zhenguang, the governor of Xuzhou (Xuchang) was in charge of the whole project. A brick-stone structure with its cross section an octagon, the pagoda has 13 floors with a height of 52m. It consists of the underground palace, the base, the body and the top. The underground palace is paved with blue slates. The base is built with blue stones, decorated with bas-relief with patterns of lotus petals and winding grass. The body is brickwork of blue stones with eaves of wooden plastic brackets. At each corner there is a dragon-shaped structure to hang a wind-bell. When the wind touches the bell, a profound charm is floating in the air with the beautiful bell ring.

The pagoda was built to boost the study atmosphere. It is recorded on the tablet inscriptions that there has been a decline of study enthusiasm since the Han Dynasty and the pagoda was built to promote it. In the pagoda, the God of Wenchang is worshipped. Later the Wenming Temple was erected and the pagoda derived another name, the Wenming Temple Pagoda. In the heart of the pagoda, there is a room in which there are statues of the Goddess of Mercy with a Thousand Hands and Eyes, the Goddess of Mercy in White and so on. On top of the pagoda, visitors can have a bird view of spectacular scenery of Xuchang.

Publishes at : 07-12-10 19:55

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