Puli Pagoda, a masterpiece of the Northern Song Dynasty

❤️ Puli Pagoda, also known as Wanfo Pagoda and Lincheng County Relic Pagoda, was built in the third year of Emperor Huangyou of the Northern Song Dynasty (1051), although it was repaired during the Jiajing and Wanli periods of the Ming Dynasty, it basically retains its original appearance. Puli Temple was abandoned during the Republic of China, and only the pagoda remains, which is also one of the few square brick pagodas of the Northern Song Dynasty in China that imitates the style of a wooden structure. ❤️ Square pagodas were common in the Tang Dynasty, while eave-style pagodas were popular in the Liao and Jin Dynasties. This pagoda can be considered an invention and creation of the Song people. The uniqueness of the Puli Pagoda lies not only in its rare eave-style square pagoda in the Song Dynasty, but also in its varied dougong (bracket set). The pagoda has eight layers of dougong, each changing in layout and style, with a lot of technical elements, and it's rare to see such freedom. ❤️ The reason why Puli Pagoda is called Wanfo Pagoda is because the four sides of the first floor are full of small Buddha statues, a total of 947, plus 42 on the inner wall, 16 Arhat statues on the second floor, 8 iron Buddha statues on the pagoda, and 1 stone Buddha in the heart of the pagoda, a total of 1041. The first floor is densely packed with small Buddhas, which is quite impressive, but most of them have been destroyed. The style of Puli Pagoda is not common in ancient times, and it is a miracle that it has been preserved to this day. 👉 In 1959, Puli Pagoda was struck by lightning, and the top of the pagoda tilted slightly to the east. 👉 In 1966, it suffered a major earthquake and man-made damage, leaving Puli Pagoda scarred. 👉 Small repairs were organized in 1980 and 1981. 👉 In 1991, the stone wall of the pagoda platform on the east side was destroyed by heavy rain. 👉 In 2001, Puli Pagoda was listed as a key national cultural relic protection unit as an ancient building from the Northern Song Dynasty. 👉 On December 1, 2006, Puli Pagoda was completely repaired. ❤️ There are several stone statues under Puli Temple. Locals say there is an ancient tomb from the Ming Dynasty nearby, and the stone statues may be even older. Among the stone statues, two stone tigers are vividly carved, looking a bit like the image of Toothless in 'How to Train Your Dragon', while the civil official next to it is heavy, with a hunched neck and a burly body, conveying a sense of a heavy minister of the country, which is rare in other stone carvings. ❤️ Over the past thousand years, only one pagoda remains in Puli Temple, but there are many more temples that have left nothing and disappeared in history.