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Hangzhou >> Leifeng Pagoda

Attraction Typ: Historic Site
Location: City Centre - Central
Recommend: 4 Star

Leifeng Pagoda

Leifeng Pagoda was one of the ten sights of the West Lake because of the Legend of the White Snake.
Leifeng Pagoda (Chinese: 雷峰塔; pinyin: Léifēng Tǎ) is one of the ten sights of the West Lake. The Leifeng Pagoda was an octagonal, five-storey structure built of brick and wood. The body of the pagoda was made of brick while the eaves, balconies, inside landings and balustrades were made of wood.

Located on the Sunset Hill south of the West Lake in Hangzhou, the Leifeng Pagoda was originally constructed in the year AD 975 at the order of Qian Hongchu, the King of Wuyue Kingdom to celebrate the birth of a son by one of his favorite concubines—Huangfei. Hence it got a name of Huangfei Pagoda at that time.

After that the pagoda became a household name as Leifeng Pagoda in China thanks to the popular folk tale, "The Legend of the White Snake", a touching love story about a girl who changed into a snake and a young man. The story has been repeatedly adapted for traditional operas and also for modern movies and TV series. In the story, the couple is separated by an evil old monk with magical powers, who had the snake girl imprisoned under the Leifeng Pagoda for years. Finally she was rescued by her son who caused the collapse of the pagoda.

In real life, the pagoda suffered a most severe disaster during the Ming Dynasty when the Japanese pirates attacked Hangzhou. Suspecting the pagoda contained weapons, they burned its wooden elements, leaving only the brick skeleton. Later, due to a superstition that bricks from the tower could repel illness or prevent miscarriage, many people stole bricks from the tower to grind into powder.

In October 1999, the provincial and municipal governments decided to rebuild Leifeng Pagoda and the extant pagoda is composed of 1,400 tone steel structure with 200 tone of copper parts, containing four sightseeing elevators, and modern features. More over, at the entrance of the pagoda there are two autonomous elevators to carry visitors to the pagoda's foot.

In the glow of the setting sun, Leifeng Pagoda looks splendid and the shadow of the pagoda is quite great.


 
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