Pagoda of Fogong Temple 
Pagoda of Fogong Temple
Backgrounds
The Sakyamuni Pagoda of Fogong Temple (Chinese: 佛宫寺释迦塔) of Ying County, Shanxi province, China, is a wooden Chinese pagoda built in 1056, during the Liao Dynasty. The pagoda was built by Emperor Daozong of Liao at the site of his grandmother's hometown. The pagoda, which has survived several large earthquakes throughout the centuries, reached a level of such fame within China that it was given the generic nickname of the "Muta".
The pagoda stands on a 4 m tall stone platform with a 10 m tall steeple, and reaches a total height of 67.31 m tall. It is the oldest existent fully wooden pagoda still standing in China. Although it is the oldest fully wooden pagoda in China, the oldest existent pagoda is the 6th century Songyue Pagoda (made of brick); the oldest existent wooden buildings in China are the Buddhist temple halls found at Mount Wutai, which date back to the mid Tang Dynasty (618–907).
History
The Pagoda of Fogong Temple was built 85 km south of the Liao Dynasty capital at Datong. The pagoda was placed at the center of the temple grounds, which used to be called Baogong Temple until its name was changed to Fogong in 1315 during the Yuan Dynasty. Although the size of the temple grounds were described as being gigantic during the Jurchen-led Jin Dynasty (1115–1234), the temple began to decline during the Ming Dynasty.
The Yingzhou Zhi, an ancient Chinese encyclopedia, records that there was a total of seven earthquakes between the years 1056 and 1103, yet the tower still stood firm. During its entire history before the 20th century, the pagoda needed only ten minor repairs. However, considerable repairs were needed after Japanese soldiers shot more than two hundred rounds into the pagoda during the World War II. While repairing the pagoda in 1974, renovators found Liao Dynasty texts of Buddhist sutras and other documents. This major discovery included the 12 scroll Liao Tripitaka printed with moveable type in 1003 in
Backgrounds
The Sakyamuni Pagoda of Fogong Temple (Chinese: 佛宫寺释迦塔) of Ying County, Shanxi province, China, is a wooden Chinese pagoda built in 1056, during the Liao Dynasty. The pagoda was built by Emperor Daozong of Liao at the site of his grandmother's hometown. The pagoda, which has survived several large earthquakes throughout the centuries, reached a level of such fame within China that it was given the generic nickname of the "Muta".
The pagoda stands on a 4 m tall stone platform with a 10 m tall steeple, and reaches a total height of 67.31 m tall. It is the oldest existent fully wooden pagoda still standing in China. Although it is the oldest fully wooden pagoda in China, the oldest existent pagoda is the 6th century Songyue Pagoda (made of brick); the oldest existent wooden buildings in China are the Buddhist temple halls found at Mount Wutai, which date back to the mid Tang Dynasty (618–907).
History
The Pagoda of Fogong Temple was built 85 km south of the Liao Dynasty capital at Datong. The pagoda was placed at the center of the temple grounds, which used to be called Baogong Temple until its name was changed to Fogong in 1315 during the Yuan Dynasty. Although the size of the temple grounds were described as being gigantic during the Jurchen-led Jin Dynasty (1115–1234), the temple began to decline during the Ming Dynasty.
The Yingzhou Zhi, an ancient Chinese encyclopedia, records that there was a total of seven earthquakes between the years 1056 and 1103, yet the tower still stood firm. During its entire history before the 20th century, the pagoda needed only ten minor repairs. However, considerable repairs were needed after Japanese soldiers shot more than two hundred rounds into the pagoda during the World War II. While repairing the pagoda in 1974, renovators found Liao Dynasty texts of Buddhist sutras and other documents. This major discovery included the 12 scroll Liao Tripitaka printed with moveable type in 1003 in