Shanxi | The magnificent, stunningly beautiful multicolored glazed pagoda that has been preserved for 500 years

| The magnificent, stunningly beautiful multicolored glazed pagoda that has been preserved for 500 years. Shanxi | The magnificent, stunningly beautiful multicolored glazed pagoda that has been preserved for 500 years • Fanta trip Shan Xi The most beautiful glazed pagoda—Guangsheng Temple One At the peak of Huo Mountain, 15 kilometers northeast of Hongtong County, stands Guangsheng Temple, built in the first year of Jianhe of the Eastern Han Dynasty (147). 'Guangsheng Temple' is a group of ancient Yuan and Ming dynasty buildings composed of the upper temple, lower temple, and the Water God Temple. Perched atop Huo Mountain, the 'Feihong Pagoda' is the most intact multicolored glazed pagoda in China and is known as the number one glazed treasure pagoda in China. It is also the only glazed pagoda discovered to date that has inscriptions by the craftsmen who built it and is the largest and most complete. The 'upper temple' has been rebuilt many times, and the existing structures are relics of the Ming dynasty reconstruction, still retaining the style of the Yuan dynasty. Inside the mountain gate is the pagoda courtyard, where the Feihong Pagoda stands. It was rebuilt in the sixth year of the Jiajing era of the Ming dynasty, with the bottom layer's surrounding corridor added in the second year of the Tianqi era. The pagoda is brick-built, with a thirteen-story octagonal plane, and the surface is entirely inlaid with yellow, green, and blue glazed tiles that form buildings, shrines, brackets, lotus petals, corner pillars, railings, flower covers, as well as patterns of coiling dragons, figures, mythical creatures, and various flowers, each layer with a different group of patterns. Especially the Buddha, Bodhisattva, and Vajra glazed figures above the third layer's platform, and the glazed coiling dragons, jewels, and floral decorations inlaid on each face from the fourth to the tenth layer, which, through the refraction of sunlight, present a beautiful spectrum of colors. The mountain gate of the 'lower temple' is towering, and the Amitabha Hall, a large hall with five bays, is supported by only two pillars. At the beginning of the last century, Guangsheng Temple was on the verge of decline. The abbot of the lower temple, Monk Zhenda, who had taken monastic vows but did not believe in Buddhism, had an affair with a nun, leading to the temple's decline. After his attempt to sell the top national treasure 'Zhaocheng Jinzang' was discovered, he turned his attention to the murals inside the hall. In 1928, American art dealers took an interest in the murals. Zhenda thought that since there were no funds for repairs, rather than waiting for the great hall to collapse and the murals to be damaged, it would be better to 'sell the paintings to repair the hall.' Thus, he joined forces with the powerful, and with a grand gesture, the 'Yao Shi Jing Bian' mural on the east wall of the Great Buddha Hall was sold to the United States for 1600 silver yuan, becoming the private collection of New York dentist Seckler. However, Zhenda did not keep his promise. After only building a side gate, he absconded with the funds, returning to secular life with the nun, and thereafter the lower temple completely fell into ruin. Because the mural was too large, Seckler later donated it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The remaining 'Blazing Light Buddha Assembly Picture' and 'Medicine Buddha Assembly Picture' were collected by the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in the United States and the University of Pennsylvania Museum, respectively. The 'Water God Temple' on the west side of the lower temple is the most intact temple dedicated to the water god in China, built no later than the Tang dynasty. The 217 square meters of murals inside the hall depict the mythological stories of the life and entertainment of the water god Ming Ying Wang at Huo Spring, among other detailed character portrayals. Guangsheng Temple has lost some things, but it has also retained some. Only the glazed tiles have become even more dazzling and lustrous with the passage of time