The White Pagoda of Miaoying Temple
Miaoying Temple is located in Beijing's Xicheng District and faces south. Covering about 13,000 square meters, it consists of a main courtyard and a pagoda courtyard. Along the central axis, from south to north, are the main gate, bell and drum towers, three main halls, and the pagoda courtyard. The pagoda courtyard stands about 2 meters above ground level and is enclosed by red walls. A small corner pavilion stands at each of its four corners, while the White Pagoda rises slightly north of the courtyard's center.
The site of the White Pagoda was personally surveyed and selected by Kublai Khan, founder of the Yuan Dynasty, and its construction was overseen by a Nepalese master craftsman. Entirely white, it is the oldest and largest surviving Tibetan-style Buddhist pagoda from the Yuan Dynasty in China. It is also an important surviving landmark of the Yuan capital. As Beijing's earliest Tibetan Buddhist pagoda, it is also regarded as one of the city's oldest iconic structures.
The pagoda is an important historical site for the study of Yuan Dynasty Buddhism and its architectural art. It bears witness to unity among the Han, Mongol and Tibetan peoples, as well as the long-standing friendship between China and Nepal. It is of considerable historical, cultural and artistic value. In 1961, it was included in the first batch of Major National Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level.
The White Pagoda consists of three main parts—the base, the body and the finial—and is built of brick and stone. Its base has three tiers, topped by a lotus-shaped platform supporting the round body of the pagoda. Above it are the neck, the thirteen tiers symbolizing the thirteen heavens, a bronze canopy and the finial. Harmoniously proportioned, the pagoda stands 50.9 meters tall. Its body resembles an inverted alms bowl beneath a canopy, and its entire surface is covered in white. Rising amid Beijing's densely packed residential neighborhoods, it resembles a giant treasure gourd.