Why is it the most gorgeous ancient pagoda in China?

"Why has it become the most gorgeous ancient pagoda in China?" Video version

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You may have looked at the rainbow after the rain

Childhood

Probably also keen to collect glass marbles

The glittering things are always fascinating

That

A new category of pagoda architecture has also emerged

Glass Tower

The Flying Rainbow Pagoda in Hongdong, Shanxi

It can be called the most gorgeous ancient pagoda in China

It is also the best-preserved glass pagoda in China

The world's tallest colorful glazed tower

The splendor of glass

On it

Unfold to the fullest

▼ Flying Rainbow Tower

so

How it became

The most ornate tower in China?

The predecessor of the Flying Rainbow Tower

It is the Ashoka Pagoda built in the Han Dynasty

It's a pity that the Yuan Dynasty

Damaged in an earthquake

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The temple's real name is Guangsheng Temple

Because of the construction of the Ashoka Pagoda

Also known as Ashoka Pagoda

During the Ming Dynasty

The monk Darren spent a total of 12 years

Presided over the rebuilding of the stupa

The foundation of today's tower was formed

1622

The Flying Rainbow Tower is also equipped with a ground floor cloister and glazed components

Its form has been maintained to this day

The first construction of the Ming Dynasty

This makes the Flying Rainbow Tower have a larger volume of foundation

Become one

Octagonal thirteen-story pavilion-style brick tower

This also became the basis for its metamorphosis

In the second construction

Added bottom cloister

The perimeter of the ground floor of the Flying Rainbow Tower was extended to 136 meters

Above the cloister

Also do there is a cross break at the top of the mountain

Fit the tower with a tapered upward extension

There are many layers, many eaves, many faces, and many corners

Not included in the cloister and hilltops

The Flying Rainbow Tower is divided into 13 floors and 14 floors

104 faces, 112 corners

It provides full space for craftsmen to play

47.31 meters on the basis of the tower

Layer by layer, various glazed components are added

The Flying Rainbow Tower thus became

The world's tallest colorful glazed tower

The Flying Rainbow Tower is built on a brick foundation nearly fifty meters high

Then install the glass layer by layer

In comparison

Among the glass pagodas in the country

Taller than it is not as gorgeous as it is

Kaibao Temple Pagoda, 55.88 meters high

Its brown glazed bricks resemble iron, so it is also known as the Kaifeng Tower

Equally gorgeous is not as tall as it is

Duobao Glass Pagoda, located in the back mountain of the Summer Palace in Beijing, is 16 meters high

It is the most colorful of the existing glass pagodas in Beijing

Taller than it and more gorgeous than it

Only one arch remains

Nanjing Dabao'en Temple Pagoda, originally 78.2 meters high

It was later destroyed by the artillery fire of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Army

The existing arch is assembled from excavated spare components and exhibited at the Nanjing Museum

Flying Rainbow Tower

At the same time, it has withstood the test of craftsmanship and history

Fore

The basis for larger volumes is established

The soul of the Flying Rainbow Tower

glass

Laying also began

▼ We have summarized the key information of this tower for you

Combine pictures to read the context for better understanding

Appears in Shang Zhou

It reached its heyday during the Ming and Qing dynasties

When the Flying Rainbow Tower was built

It is at the peak of ancient glass technology

The glass material process is cumbersome

The slightest carelessness can be abandoned

Extremely precious in ancient times

Plus it's not easy to wear

The characteristics of bright colors

Became one of the Seven Treasures of Buddhism

The phrase "forming a god like glass" symbolizes the highest state of cultivation

It was gradually applied to the construction of stupas

A concubine in the corner of the cloister

On it is written "Si Ti Tat Pan Ra"

It means "the pure wisdom of the Buddha covers all sentient beings"

Under it is written "Nam no Amitabha Buddha"

The façade of the Flying Rainbow Tower

It can be called the showmanship of glass craftsmen

In terms of color

Ancient times will be gold wood water fire earth

Corresponds to white, green, black, red, and yellow

These five colors are called positive colors

There is a strict hierarchy

Yellow is the first of the five colors

The five major colors and color grades of ancient times

The Flying Rainbow Tower not only includes these five positive colors

There are also a variety of other inter-colours

Such as blue, purple, brown

Make the whole tower shine

Colorful glazing cascades on top of each other

In the sun

Brilliant and dazzling

furthermore

Also meticulously

Divide the dignity and inferiority of the figure statue by color

Three-tiered southeast Jizo Bodhisattva's robe

A deep yellow glaze is applied from top to bottom

Only the crown on the top of the head

A small amount of green was used as a garnish

The body is glazed with white

There is very little sauce-colored glaze

The color of the Statue of Kongo is mainly green

The amount of yellow is relatively small

Statues of Bodhisattvas and Lux are predominantly green and white

Very little yellow

The bodhisattva in the center has more yellow glaze

Contrast with other statues that are mostly green and white on both sides

Formally

The single ridge of the Flying Rainbow Tower is dazzling

The bottom cloister of the tower

Formed with the roof of the cross-off hill above

Several vertical, perimeter and ridges

It is covered with colorful flowers

Ridge-side carved dragons snaked

Glazed colors are included

Emerald green, yellow, white, brown, etc

Gorgeous and dazzling

Flying Rainbow Tower on the roof ridges of each road

Full of flowers, dragons

And on the bucket made of glass

The head is made into the shape of a monk's head, an animal head, a dragon head, etc

In the second floor

A single side has a stylized head

That's 3 or 4

More than 200 full floors

It is rare in ancient buildings

The head of the bucket arch

Made into a variety of chic shapes

On the corners of the tower

There are also 114 glass faucets

Wind chimes hang under its mouth

Add rhythm

Glass faucet

The rest of the glass statues

Extremely rich in shape

The second dimension is five meters wide

However, there are 19 statues of Vajrayogini and Lux densely distributed throughout the floor

The lion king kong in the middle is 1.85 meters high

The movements are extraordinary

Three layers are narrower

However, there are 40 statues of Buddha of various colors

And so on

The layers are decorated with a central pattern or glazing

There are few repetitions

Partial glass statues on the second and third floors

The interior of this tower

There is also a magnificent three-story glass algae well

Among the various shapes of the components

There are two kinds of pavilions: single eaves and heavy eaves

The terrace is divided into hexagonal and octagonal

Pavilions also have round, square, and polygonal shapes

Lotus petals are also divided into lotus, lotus covering, and treasure dress

The topmost carving has 8 faucets

All pointing to the 9th dragon circling in the center

It is in the form of a Kowloon empowerment

The entire algae well

It is a classic in the national glass products

Kowloon empowerment at the top of the well

These inner and outer glazed components fit together

Let the Flying Rainbow Tower bid farewell to the dullness of green bricks and gray tiles

But give it brilliance in the true sense

It makes it the most gorgeous tower in China

In fact

There are others

On making glass

Shanxi's conditions are unique

It is not only the capital of the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties

Closer

Easy to transport to the palace

It is also rich in soil and minerals

It is able to fire glass with excellent texture

therefore

In the coal resources are abundant

Yangcheng, Taiyuan, Hejin, Jiexiu and other places

A number of famous glass kilns have been formed

And the big family of glass firing

Gangue in the Hongdong area has a low carbon content

It is the ideal raw material for firing pottery

It has also become the main production area for glass products

The Glass of the Flying Rainbow Pagoda is the work of the local Gongsun Village Qiao Clan

Craftsmen from all over Shanxi are constantly exploring

In meta-time

It created a precedent for the dragon-shaped partridge kiss

The kiss of the Three Qing Halls of Yongle Palace in Shanxi

Up to 3 meters tall

It is almost 2 meters wide

Magnificent

It was the first of its kind in ancient times on the mainland

A large partridge in the shape of a dragon

Yongle Palace Sanqing Hall Partridge Kiss

In the era when glaze color was the core technology

They also pioneered the extremely difficult one

Peacock blue glaze color

It's called a stunt

Due to the complexity of the process

It was even lost at one point

These techniques were imposed on the Flying Rainbow Tower

Created a dragon-shaped partridge snout at both ends of the ridge

and a second-tier peacock blue bucket

Make the tower even more exquisite

Peacock blue bucket on the second floor

They keep improving

Proficiency in the use of complex processes

Not only carved out of the Flying Rainbow Tower

Numerous, large, complex and fine glass components

It is still in Shanxi Province

Left Datong Nine Dragon Wall, Jincheng Jade Emperor Temple Twenty-Eight Stars

and other legendary works

Datong Nine Dragon Wall

Their impact is enormous

Due to the growth of construction activities

Conveying alone is not enough to meet demand

Shanxi craftsmen moved to other places

Participated

The Forbidden City in Beijing, the Imperial Palace in Shenyang, and the Confucius Temple in Qufu

Glass manufacturing of other important buildings

After they were ordered to enter Beijing

Standardize and stereotype glass shapes and sizes

The official practice of forming Shanxi liuli

The process technology embodied in the Flying Rainbow Tower

He also went to all parts of the country with Shanxi craftsmen

Leave the jindi glass full of good stories all over the world

A corner of the Imperial Palace in Shenyang

Glazed tiles sparkle

They sealed the colorful streams in the flames

Let the Flying Rainbow Tower and more buildings

A pulsating rainbow of light blooms

Sweat, hard work, research, breakthroughs

Let the glass skills, and even the three Jin culture

Out of Shanxi

All over China

This is Bita

More gorgeous presence

Producer: Hu Pengfei

Edit: Cheng Jie

Proofreader/Producer: Wu Baoshan

Model: Wu Wenxia

Editing: Tong Chong Wang Zhi

Draft: Li Siyi

Recording: Zhou Yujie

Some of the images are from Figureworm Ideas and are licensed

bibliography:

Hao Jingjing. Guangsheng Temple Feihong Pagoda glass statue art exploration[D]. Shanxi University, 2012.

Chen Jiarui. A Brief Analysis of the Architecture and Decorative Arts of Feihong Pagoda[J]. Beauty and the Times: Journal of Fine Arts (Medium), 2012(5):2.

Ren Kunlong. Ancient Architecture Liuli Culture from the Perspective of Sanjin Culture[J]. Heritage World, 2020(6):4.

ZHANG Li. "Liu" Light "Glass" Color—— Ancient Chinese Glass Art[J]. Cultural Relics Appraisal and Appreciation, 2021(6):3.

HE Mengzhe. Investigation and research on glazed ridge decoration of ancient architecture in southern Shanxi[D]. Tsinghua University, 2013.

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