Xingguo Temple Pagoda
Xingguo Temple Pagoda
CHINA, Hebei, Baoding
Xingguo stands for Flourishing Country. The pagoda was built during the Tang dynasty (618–907) and is the sole surviving structure of the temple. The pagoda was listed as a National Cultural Heritage Site in 2006.
The solid, square, marble pagoda has 15 tiers and is 7.5 m high. The first tier consists of slabs of vertical stones mounted on a pedestal and separated by eaves in the form of corbeling. There is a small chamber inside with a doorway on its south side, with guardians on each side of the door. There are reliefs of the Buddha, two disciples, and some figures making offerings on the back wall of the chamber. The inscriptions on the back wall date the pagoda to 710. The spire is shaped like a jewel and is made from stone.
The structure is constructed from marble, which was rarely used during the Tang dynasty. Apart from the first tier, each tier is made from a single block of marble.
For more details, go to the Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Architecture T-Z, page 1322.
Cite this article:
author = Hsingyun and Youheng and Johnson, Peter and Mankuang and Lancaster, Lewis,
booktitle = {Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Architecture T-Z},
pages = 1322,
title = {{Xingguo Temple Pagoda}},
volume = 4,
year = {2016}}