Four-day Treasure Hunt in Southern Shanxi: Wanrong Jiwang Temple

✅Where is the oldest existing "庑殿顶" building? Wanrong. ✅In ancient Chinese architecture, the "庑殿顶" is the highest level and is generally only used for the main buildings of royal palaces and temples. The Hall of Supreme Harmony in the Forbidden City in Beijing is the largest and most magnificent "hipped roof" building in existence. It has a double-skinned hipped roof and was built when Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty moved the capital. ✅However, in a very inconspicuous small village in Wanrong County, Yuncheng, Shanxi, there is a "庑殿顶" building. The inscription on the stele said it was renovated in the Jin Dynasty. According to experts, it was first built in the Northern Song Dynasty, which is even older, which is amazing. ✅Legend has it that Emperor Yao's elder brother Hou Ji taught people how to farm, that is, he taught the common people how to grow crops, and was appointed by Yao as an agricultural teacher. He worked tirelessly to sow grains and feed the people. Later generations revered him as the God of Agriculture and was the "Ancestor of Farming and God of Grains" of China. Because of his great contributions, sacrifices are constantly made to him and there are many temples dedicated to him, especially in Shanxi and Shaanxi. 📍Wanrong "Ji Wang Temple" is located in Taizhao Village in the north of the city. The gate is not prominent, but the courtyard is quite large and is surrounded by residential houses. 📍When you enter the door, there is a reversed stage. A door through the pavilion vaguely reveals the majestic atmosphere of the hall, which is dignified and beautiful, simple and timeless without losing its grandeur. There is a corridor on the front, with walls that recede inward, making the roof appear wider and the eaves deeper. The brackets under the eaves are clustered and connected like a string of flowers. ❤Walk around the "Qian Sui" Hall with a respectful heart. It is truly unique: no beams, but there are corridors and one stone pillar. Unlike most palace-style wooden structures, the main hall does not have a large beam running through the front and back. Instead, it is supported by small beams inserted on the pillars. It looks very complicated and is known as the "beamless hall". It can be said to be an alternative among wooden structures. The main hall where the statue is enshrined is very small. It is built only with walls built around the central pillar. There is a circle of corridors outside and the front is not closed. Bells, drums, inscriptions, shrines, etc. are placed here. It serves the combined function of a bell tower, drum tower and offering hall? There are five bays and six pillars on the front, but only one stone pillar with a coiled dragon pattern, which is very different from the traditional habit of even numbers and symmetry. I wonder why? ❤After chatting with the old man who guards the temple, I learned that the main hall was repaired in 1998. The purlins and tiles on the roof were replaced, and new walls were built. The beams and columns could only be reinforced and some rotten parts replaced, but they did not dare to dismantle the frame at all, because once dismantled, according to the modern level of ancient buildings, such a complex beam frame could not be put back! ❤Embedded on the wall is a handwritten "Introduction to the Beamless Hall" by villagers, signed by "Tai Zhao Old People's Association Cultural Relics Protection Group" and dated "June 30, 1998". Could it be that the repair was organized spontaneously by the villagers of Tai Zhao? move!