Pinghu City God Temple, Zhejiang Province

Pinghu City God Temple is the oldest building in Pinghu City, dating back to the same time as the establishment of Pinghu County, about 600 years ago. It is dedicated to the Chinese folk and Taoist deity who protects the city. The main hall was built in the fifth year of the Xuande reign of the Ming Dynasty (1430), at the beginning of the establishment of Pinghu County, when the county magistrate Wang Jian selected a site 150 steps east of the county seat to build the temple. It was originally dedicated to the Tangwu Marshal Zilu as the City God of Pinghu. In the sixteenth year of the Chenghua reign, the county magistrate Li Zhi used the money he had saved to buy land, about three zhang wide, and built a road to the south for the deity, and rebuilt the hall and the gate. During the Jiajing period, the county magistrate Gu Tingdui built a three-bay pavilion for worship, and the ancient cypress trees in front of the hall, which were planted in the Song Dynasty, are now nearly 600 years old. However, due to the ravages of time and the baptism of war, only the main hall of the City God Temple remains, which is the oldest and most valuable traditional brick and wood structure building in Pinghu City. It is a key cultural relic protection unit in Pinghu City.