Dai Temple

Dai Temple
岱庙
The "Hall of Heavenly Blessings" (Chinese: 天贶殿; pinyin: Tiān kuàng diàn) of Dai Temple
Religion
AffiliationDaoism, Chinese folk religion
StatusMuseum
Location
LocationTai'an, Shandong
Country China
Shown within China
Coordinates36°15′21″N 117°06′27″E / 36.25583°N 117.10750°E / 36.25583; 117.10750
Architecture
CompletedAD 1008
(Song dynasty)

The Dai Temple (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: Dàimiào), also known as Dongyue Temple (东岳庙) is a Daoist Chinese temple in Tai'an, Shandong province, China, with extant structures dating back to the 11th century. It is a place of worship for Chinese deities and dedicated to Dongyue Dadi, the supreme deity of Mount Tai. The temple is located at the foot of the mountain.

History

The Dai Temple was originally built during the Han dynasty (202 BC – AD 220), and was a site where imperial sacrifices were conducted, starting with Emperor Wu of Han in 110 BC.[1] The Feng Shan sacrifices were discontinued by AD 1008 when the temple was reconstructed and greatly extended during the Song dynasty (968–1279).[1] A settlement around the temple grew into a proper city over time due to many pilgrims visiting the site. An originally rammed earth wall was built around the town and temple in 1162. However, this wall was reconstructed in stone between 1511–1523 during the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), and completed fully with a total length of 4 km in 1553.[1]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Schinz 1996, p. 342.

Sources

  • Schinz, Alfred (1996). The Magic Square: Cities in Ancient China. Stuttgart, London, Sungnam (South Korea): Edition Axel Menges, Daehan Printing & Publishing Co., Ltd. ISBN 3930698021.

External sources