Tianning Monastery, Lingxiao Pagoda 天寧寺凌霄塔

Building Information

The Lingxiao Pagoda 凌霄塔 of the Zhengding Tianning Monastery was originally constructed during the reign of the Tang emperor Daizong 唐代宗 (762-779) and named Huiguang Pagoda 慧光塔. It was reconstructed during the Northern Song dynasty and restored during the Jin dynasty when it was renamed Lingxiao Pagoda, also known as the Wooden Pagoda (muta 木塔). The pagoda is an octagonal (bajiao 八角), nine-story hollow structure standing at forty-one meters tall. Its base is constructed from a combination of brick and stone (zhuanshi hunhe qi 砖石混合砌). Brick comprises the first three stories, with doors in all of the cardinal directions. Above the doors, the brickwork takes on wooden architectural features (fangmu jiegou 仿木结构) such as pillar top tie beams (lan‘e 闌額) keyword/k000038), supporting single huagong 華栱, as well as four puzuo 鋪作. The second and third stories feature corner columns (yizhu 倚柱) crafted from brick. From the fourth to ninth stories, the structure transitions to a timber frame (da mujia jiegou 大木架結構). A central vertical column (tongtianzhu 通天柱) runs through all timber levels, with cross-beams (baliang 扒梁) connecting to eaves pillars (yanzhu 檐柱) at every level. Dougong 枓栱 support the eaves, while wooden floorboards (mu louban 木樓板) are laid on each level, connected by wooden staircases. The pagoda’s finial (tacha 塔刹), made of cast iron (tie zhu 铁铸), has an oval shape described as a hollow date pit (kongxin zaohezhuang 空心棗核狀). The pagoda has been preserved through significant repairs and is accompanied by five historical steles (beike 碑刻) from the Ming and Qing dynasties, preserving its cultural and architectural significance.

Beneath the Lingxiao Pagoda, an underground palace (digong 地宫) was discovered during restoration efforts in 1982 (Li 1984, 48). The chamber, located slightly southwest of the pagoda’s geometric center, is a circular brick structure with a domed ceiling and a paved floor of rectangular bricks (tiao zhuan 條磚). Hanging from the center of the ceiling was a a large bronze mirror (Liu and Fan 1991, 28). Within the chamber were three reliquaries, the largest of which is a remarkable lotus-shaped stone reliquary (lianhuaxing shihan 莲花形石函) crafted from limestone (qingshi 青石) and adorned with carved lotus petals and peony motifs. This reliquary contained a second rectangular marble reliquary, itself containing crystal spheres, gilded silver pieces, and a miniature model of a two-story pavilion, reflecting the artistry and devotional practices of the era. Inscriptions on the lotus reliquary document a repair to the pagoda in the fifth year of the Song Qingli reign period (1045), a the reconstruction of the pagoda to the first year of the Jin Huangtong reign period (1141), and internment of the reliquary to the sixth year of the Jin Zhenglong reign period (1161). The third reliquary, found on top of the other two, bears an inscription dated to the second year of the Northern Song Chongning reign (1103) (Li 1984, 49-52, Liu and Fan 1991, 28-30). These findings confirm that the Lingxiao Pagoda was built on the site of the earlier Huiguang Pagoda and highlight its function as a reliquary site central to Buddhist worship and cultural heritage. 1

External Links

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