Daci’en Temple Pagoda

CHINA, Shaanxi, Xi’an

It is also known as Dayan (Giant Wild Goose) Pagoda. In 652 during the Tang dynasty, Master Xuanzang had proposed to build the pagoda to house the sutras that he had brought back from India. The pagoda was originally five stories high. It collapsed and was reconstructed between 701 and 705. During the rule of Emperor Wanli (reigned 1572–1620) of the Ming dynasty, an extra layer of bricks was added to the exterior of the pagoda but the original Tang dynasty style was retained. The pagoda was renovated between 1954 and 1955. It was listed as a National Cultural Heritage Site in 1961.
The seven-story, square, brick pagoda is 64.5 m high. The base is constructed in brick and is 25.5 m wide and 4.2 m high. On every story there are imitation wooden pilasters, architraves, and bracket sets on the exterior walls. The eaves are in the form of corbeling, beneath which there are two courses of dogtooth bricks. Within the arched doorways of each story there are square chambers and wooden stairways that lead to the top of the pagoda. The stories decrease in size with height. The spire is in the form of a glazed ceramic gourd.
The entrances on the first story contain limestone door frames and lintels, which are engraved with floral patterns, Buddhist figures, and images of Buddhas in Shrines. The hall images are especially important sources of information on Tang dynasty architectural layouts. On either side of the arched doorway on the south wall there are steles with inscriptions composed by Tang dynasty emperors and inscribed by Chu Suiliang, a famous Tang dynasty calligrapher. They are considered to be treasures of Chinese calligraphy. In 1989 the pagoda was found to have inclined toward the northwest by just over 1 m.