Highlights of ancient architecture in Tai'an (2)

With Dawenkou Culture having originated in the area 5,000 years ago, Tai'an in East China's Shandong province occupies a significant place in the origin of Chinese civilization and has a long history and profound cultural deposits.

Therefore, there are many examples of ancient architecture in the area.

1. Lingshan Temple

Lingshan Temple, located at the summit of Lingshan Mountain in Ningyang, a county-level city of Tai'an, is the only Buddhist temple in the area. There is no verified time of construction for this temple, of which the earliest historical record can be traced back to the year of 760.

The whole temple, shaped like an oval, is 60 meters long from north to south and some 49 meters from west to east. It is composed of three parts. The front courtyard hosts many ancient stone tablets, such as ones built during the reign of Emperor Wanli of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

The middle part is a well-preserved ancient architectural complex, including the main hall, and the bell and drum towers. The backyard stands the two-story Yuhuang Pavilion, which was established in the reign of Emperor Kangxi (1661-1722) of the Qing Dynasty and where it is said that Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty lived.

The eastern side of the temple is the tomb area for monks, commonly known as the stele forest, where still exist many tombstones with a long time span and which have an important historical and artistic value.

The Chinese People's Liberation Army has been in charge of the temple since 1956, and the temple was listed among the Shandong provincial historical buildings list in 2000.

Location: Huafeng town, Ningyang, Tai'an, Shandong

Lingshan Temple. [Photo/WeChat account: SDTXTA]