Tianning Temple (Beijing)

Tianning Temple
A plaque at the front gate of the Tianning Temple
Information
Address	Beijing
Country	China

The Tianning Temple (simplified Chinese: 天宁寺; traditional Chinese: 天寧寺; pinyin: TiānníngSì) is located in Xicheng District of Beijing, China. The temple contains the 12th-century Pagoda of Tianning Temple. The pagoda is a Liao Dynasty pagoda built from around 1100 to 1119 or 1120 CE, shortly before the Liao Dynasty was conquered by Song and Jin.

Architecture

Liao dynasty brick and stone pagoda at Tianning Temple

This thirteen story, 57.8 m (189 ft) tall, octagonal-based Chinese pagoda is made of brick and stone, yet imitates the design of wooden-constructed pagodas from the era by featuring ornamental dougong (bracket supports). It rests on a large square platform, with the bottom portion of the pagoda taking on the shape of a sumeru pedestal. The pagoda features a veranda with banisters, yet is entirely solid with no hollow inside or staircase as some pagodas feature. Other ornamental designs include arched doorways and heavenly Buddhist guardians. Its design inspired that of later pagodas, such as the similar Ming Dynasty era Pagoda of Cishou Temple of Beijing built in 1576.

The structure and ornamentation have remained the same since the pagoda was built, but a major earthquake in 1976 caused the original pearl-shaped steeple of the pagoda to break off and fall. It has since been restored. The temple grounds surrounding the pagoda have also been renovated and rebuilt several times over the course of the Ming and Qing dynasties. The architectural historian Liang Sicheng (1901–1972)—known for discovering and documenting the oldest existent wooden structures still standing in China—lauded the Pagoda of Tianning Temple as a pristine architectural design of antiquity.

Relief sculpture on the south face of the pagoda

See also

• Chinese architecture
• Architecture of the Song Dynasty
• Tianning Temple (Changzhou)
• History of Beijing

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tianning Temple, Beijing.

• (English) China Through a Lens about the temple

Old city of Beijing Subdivisions Inner City Outer City Imperial City Forbidden City Fortifications and towers Yongdingmen Gate Zhengyangmen Gate Zhonghuamen Tiananmen Gate Deshengmen Gate Bell and Drum towers Forbidden City Meridian Gate Gate of Supreme Harmony Hall of Mental Cultivation Hall of Supreme Harmony Hall of Central Harmony Hall of Preserving Harmony Palace of Heavenly Purity Hall of Union Palace of Earthly Tranquility Gate of Divine Might Imperial gardens, temples and offices Jingshan Park Beihai Park Zhongnanhai Taimiao (Imperial Ancestral Temple) Zhongshan Park Confucius Temple Guozijian Beijing Ancient Observatory Beijing Zoo Old Summer Palace Summer Palace Fragrant Hills Jude Spring Hill Temple of Heaven Temple of Earth Temple of the Sun Temple of the Moon Xiannongtan (Temple of Agriculture) Temples and gardens Shichahai Yonghe Temple Fayuan Temple White Cloud Temple Zhen Jue Temple Miaoying Temple Wanshou Temple Temple of Azure Clouds Badachu Dongyue Temple Guanghua Temple Tanzhe Temple Wofo Temple Big Bell Temple Bailin Temple Guangji Temple Fahai Temple Changchun Temple Zhihua Temple Yunju Temple Tianning Temple Mosques and churches Xuanwumen Cathedral Xishiku Cathedral Xizhimen Cathedral Wangfujing Cathedral St. Michael's Church Niujie Mosque

Coordinates: 39°53′37″N 116°20′24″E / 39.8937°N 116.34°E / 39.8937; 116.34