Zhenguo tower

In the East is the "Zhenguo tower", which was first built in the sixth year of Xiantong (865) of the Tang Dynasty. The five storey wooden tower was built by Zen master Wencheng. After several times of destruction and renovation, the wood was changed into brick. In the third year of Baoqing (1227) of the Southern Song Dynasty, it was changed into a seven level brick tower. Today's stone tower is rebuilt between the second year of Jiaxi (1238) and the tenth year of Chunyou (1250) of the Southern Song Dynasty, with a height of 48.24 meters.

The plane of East Tower is divided into four parts: corridor, outer wall, inner corridor and octagonal column. The tower is a frame structure. The central column of the tower runs through each floor and is the support of the whole tower. Stone beams are erected at eight corners of the tower core columns on each floor, which are connected to the 2-meter-thick tower wall and leaning column. The protective bucket of the top column is supported out of the Chinese arch layer by layer to reduce the span of stone beams. The stone beam and the beam support are like chisels and mortise joints, which make the stress connection between the tower core and the tower wall dependent and form a whole, greatly strengthening the firmness of the tower body. The wall of the tower is made of granite. The calculation is accurate and the construction is meticulous. In 1997, Dongta was selected as one of China's four famous pagoda stamps, which can be called the king of stone pagodas.

Zhenguo tower

Quanzhou Kaiyuan Temple was built in the second year of Tang Dynasty (686). It is an important cultural relic along the southeast coast of China and the largest Buddhist temple in Fujian Province.

brief introduction

The East and West pagodas in the temple are the remains of the Song Dynasty. They were built more than ten years ago, and their regulations are basically the same. They are octagonal five story imitation wooden pavilion style stone pagodas. Among them, Zhenguo pagoda (East pagoda) is 48.24 meters high, Renshou pagoda (West pagoda) is 44.06 meters high, and the distance between the two pagodas is about 200 meters, which is the highest pair of stone pagodas in China. On both sides of the door niche on each floor of the tower are floating statues of warriors, heavenly kings, Vajra, Arhats, etc. The bases and beams of the two towers, as well as the patterns and decorations of various door lights and parts, are all carved and chiseled from granite.

The Zhenguo tower was built by Zen master Wencheng in the Xianheng period of Tang Dynasty (670-673). At first, it was a wooden pagoda, which was used to place Buddhist relics. Later, due to the disaster, it was rebuilt and changed into a stone pagoda. The tower is a pure granite, wood like structure of the pavilion type building, the tower center is strong and strong, connected with the outer wall by beams and brackets, with strong anti earthquake and anti typhoon ability. The shape of the tower is magnificent and the stone carving is exquisite and simple. The 80 protective deities carved on the wall have different identities, costumes, postures, weapons and facial expressions, and have distinctive personalities. There are thirty-nine consecutive images of Sakyamuni's becoming a Buddha embedded in the waist of xumizuo. Each theme is concentrated, and the characters' stories are detailed and fascinating. It is one of the best stone buildings in Song Dynasty, and is listed as the national key cultural relics protection unit.

It is a unique symbol of the ancient city of Quanzhou, a treasure of ancient stone architecture, a monument in the history of ancient architecture in China, and a masterpiece of the fusion of national culture and overseas culture.

Address: east side of Kaiyuan Temple, West Street, Quanzhou

Longitude: 118.586277

Latitude: 24.913307