Liyi Town, Lingchuan County, Jincheng City, Shanxi Province

Liyi town

Liyi town is located in the northwest of Lingchuan County, Shanxi Province, 18 kilometers away from the county in the East, adjacent to Gaoping City in the West and Changzhi City in the north. The territory is flat and fertile. There are many buildings in song, Jin and Yuan Dynasties. Cuifujun temple, nanjixiang temple, beijixiang temple and Longyan temple in the town are national key cultural relics protection units, and there are many ancient dwellings left, which can be called "the first town of Taihang cultural relics".

General situation of the town

Liyi town belongs to Lingchuan County of Shanxi Province, located in the northwest border of Lingchuan County, with a total area of about 86 square kilometers. Liyi town borders Beishi town of Gaoping City in the west, and Yangcun town and Chongwen town in the East. In the south, it is adjacent to the attached towns, and in the north, it is adjacent to Changzhi City. The city is 20km away from Lingchuan County in the East, 24km away from Gaoping City in the west, 50km away from Changzhi City in the north and 45km away from Jincheng City in the south. It is rich in resources, fertile land, convenient transportation and superior location. It is the first gateway for Gaoping to enter Lingchuan County. the town governs 34 administrative villages and 46 natural villages with a permanent population of 29077 (2017). Qinhui highway from the town's Su village to Yangxing River, runs through the town's East and West, about 8 km long in Liyi town; Lingli line, east of Chongwen Town, from liangquanling into the town, about 10 km long in Liyi town; Lifu line, 5 km long in Liyi town. It has formed a convenient and fast transportation network in the town.

Historical Retrospection

In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Liyi was an important economic and cultural town in the west of Lingchuan and one of the four ancient towns in the county. According to the records of Lingchuan County annals, as early as Xia and Shang Dynasties, Liyi villages were formed. The Western Zhou Dynasty was the fief of Jin State, the Warring States period was under the jurisdiction of Zhao state, and the Western Han Dynasty was under the jurisdiction of Weishi County. The long history and splendid culture make this ancient town, known as "the land of rites and righteousness", accumulate rich ancient architectural relics. There are not only exquisite Ming and Qing courtyards, but also magnificent and simple temples, ancestral halls and guild halls. The most valuable cultural relic of Li Yi is its temple architecture.

Temple architecture

Cui Fu Jun Temple

The most complete preserved Jin Yuan architecture in Liyi town is Cui Fujun temple, which stands on the high platform in the north corner of the village. The temple was first built in the Tang Dynasty and rebuilt in the 24th year of jindading (AD 1284). The layout of the temple is rigorous and the shape is regular, and the most distinctive building is the Mountain Gate in front of the temple. The platform in front of the mountain gate is convex, with stone steps on both sides facing each other. In front of the central axis is a platform of more than 100 square meters, with three corridors on the left and right. The gate is located in the middle of the north side of the platform. It is three rooms wide and six rafters deep. It has double eaves on the top of the mountain. It is made of gray tiles. The main ridge is decorated with glass. The Ming Dynasty is decorated with bluestone door frames of the Song Dynasty, which are engraved with exquisite patterns. On the second floor, the flat seat is used as a fence. Under the flat seat is a double copied five shop bucket arch. On the roof, the bucket arch is a single lower arch. The beam structure is made in the Jin Dynasty. On both sides of the mountain gate, there is a Ye gate. The blue stone lions on both sides of the gate and the wood carvings on the lintel are all exquisitely carved. The whole building of the mountain gate is solemn, beautiful and majestic. It is quite different from the ordinary temples. It is worthy of being a masterpiece of ancient craftsmen. the building of the whole temple faces south from the north and is a courtyard with two entrances. As soon as you enter the courtyard, there is an inverted stage facing the main hall, which is five rooms wide, four rafters deep, and a single eaves hanging mountain structure. It used to be a place for God worship and performance. The second entrance hall is the main hall, with five rooms wide, eight rafters deep, five ridges hanging on the mountain, and a roll shed worship hall built in front of the hall. There are two ear rooms on the left and right sides of the main hall, and there are East and west side halls, corridor rooms and other buildings, a total of more than 50 houses. This kind of temple built on the high platform and the stone steps facing each other on both sides of the platform can only be seen in the Dunhuang frescoes of the Tang Dynasty. It is a rare material object in terms of history, science, artistic value and cultural connotation.

Beijixiang Temple

Located in the southwest of the village, beijixiang temple is a large-scale ancient temple complex. The temple was founded in the fifth year of Dali (770 A.D.) in the Tang Dynasty, and has been rebuilt many times in later dynasties. The temple has a three-way structure. The bell and drum towers on both sides in front of the temple and the "spring and Autumn Pavilion" gate on the front slope of the bell and drum tower were demolished in the 1950s and 1970s respectively. In addition, there were four ancient pines in front of the temple, which were known as the "Four Heavenly Kings". Unfortunately, three of them have been cut down. Now there is only one in the southwest, which is still lush and stands in the sky. The front and middle halls of the temple are the oldest relics of the Jin and Yuan Dynasties. The front hall is three rooms wide and six rafters deep. It has a single eaves and nine ridges on top of the mountain. It is covered with gray glazed tiles. There is an iron Buddha statue cast in the Tang Dynasty. Among them, the front eaves of the hall are in the shape of wooden columns and ridges, and the Dougong is huge and simple, which is quite a legacy of early architecture. There are symmetrical Yemen and Yuanguang gates on both sides of the front hall and the middle hall. The back hall is five rooms wide, six rafters deep, with a single eaves on the top of the mountain and a one-step front corridor. There are symmetrical left and right wing buildings on both sides of the hall, and the East and west side halls and corridors are all the buildings left over from the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Nanjixiang Temple

Nanjixiang temple is located in the center of Pingchuan village, Liyi Town, Lingchuan County, opposite to beijixiang temple in Liyi town. It was founded in an ominous time and was originally located in songjiachuan village, Liyi town. In 1030, it was moved to Pingchuan village for reconstruction and maintained in yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. It has a history of more than 1000 years. The whole Nanji Temple faces south from the north. On the central axis, there are front hall, Dangyang hall and Yuanming hall. On both sides, there are bell and Drum Tower, auxiliary hall and Zen room. The reporter found that the front hall was occupied by the supply and marketing cooperatives. Nanjixiang temple is located in Pingchuan village, 3km south of the town. It is a Song Dynasty building. It is the oldest ancient architectural relic of the temple among the four national protection units in Liyi town. According to the original stele in the temple, "nanjixiang temple dates back to the Emperor Taizong's reign of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty. Song Jiachuan, which was originally located in the south of Pingchuan, was relocated and rebuilt in the reign of song Tiansheng. " It took nearly 400 years for the temple to be built by Emperor Taizong during the reign of emperor Tiansheng in the Song Dynasty. The inscriptions also record a little-known story about this huge relocation project: it is said that the reconstruction started with a rich family surnamed Cui in Lucheng county. When he lived in Pingchuan village, because he was older, his wife and concubine had not yet given birth to a son who inherited his family property, so he wanted to donate money to build the temple in exchange for a successor. Unexpectedly, his wife gave birth to a noble son named Youfu. At the age of 15, she became the number one scholar, and was the first of the seven in the Song Dynasty. The inscription is very detailed. Unfortunately, it was destroyed in the cultural revolution. Now there is only the legend of public praise left. the building of the temple is a two-way courtyard, with a mountain gate in front of the central axis and a theater tower on the top, with East and west side doors on both sides. As soon as you enter the courtyard, the central axis is the central hall, which is three rooms wide and three rooms deep, with single eaves and nine ridges resting on the top of the mountain. The gray tube tile is used to pave the top. The ridge of the hall is a colorful dragon confrontation, and the colored glass is cut. The eaves and arches of the hall were made of bamboo, which were copied from the bottom of the hall. They were all made of steal heart and made of huge materials. In the hall, the beams are regular, the architectural form is thick and simple, the production technique is simple and concise, and there are few carving and fine carving, which is a typical architectural style of the Song Dynasty. The back hall on the central axis of the second courtyard is Yuanming hall. The hall is five rooms wide, six rafters deep, with a single eaves resting on the top of the mountain, and the Dougong is paved with no mending room. There are two semi-circular windows on the top and bottom of the hall, three open doors in the middle and on the East and west sides, and a wooden plaque of "Yuanming hall" hanging on the front of the middle door. There are more than 50 square meters of Yuan Dynasty murals on both sides of the inner walls of the hall, which are vivid and smooth, and are the existing treasures in the temple.

Longyan Temple

Longyan temple is located in Liangquan village, 6 kilometers east of the town. The temple, formerly known as Longquan Temple, was founded in the second year of Tang Zongzhang (669 AD). In 1129 ad, the temple was rebuilt, and the original name of the temple was changed to Longyan temple. The whole temple is divided into upper and lower chambers, facing south. At present, the mountain gate and the left wing room in the south of the central axis of the temple have disappeared, but the buildings in the north of the hall are very complete. The hall of the lower hall and the back hall of the upper hall are of the most cultural value. The hall of the lower courtyard is built on a five story blue stone platform, with three rooms in depth and three rooms in width. It has a single eaves and a hill shaped roof. It is paved with gray tubular tiles, and the ridge is decorated with pottery gray flying dragons. The Dragon kisses on both sides confront each other. The front eaves of the hall are supported by four pillars with rolling brake on the top of the pillars. The Dougong is built in the form of Qin face. The material of Dougong is huge. It is a typical architectural technique of Jin Dynasty. The upper courtyard is also built on a seven storey blue stone platform. It rises to the top of the terrace. To the north of it is the back hall, which is five rooms wide and six rafters deep. The eaves of the hall are supported by four stone pillars, and under the eaves is a hall gallery. The roof is a single eaves suspended hill type, and the bucket arch is made of five pavilions. There are three auxiliary halls on both sides of the main hall, which is the architectural style of yuan and Ming Dynasties. There are two intact steles on both sides of the hall. One is the record of Longyan Temple written by Zhao Anshi, a Jinshi in Zhenyuan period of Pingcheng County in the third year of jindading; the other is the record of Fatang of Xinjian Longyan Temple written by Chang Qian, a local tribute in the 25th year of jindading. These two steles truly record the founding process and history of the temple.

Precious heritage

The four existing temples in Liyi town are not only the glorious models of ancient architectural art in China, but also the precious heritage of Chinese culture. It fully demonstrates the intelligence and superb artistic attainments of the working people. Especially in the song, Jin and Yuan Dynasties, the ancient buildings are mostly obliterated by history, so we feel their value is more precious. Therefore, it is our bounden duty to protect and manage these "national treasures" conscientiously.

Chinese PinYin : Shan Xi Sheng Jin Cheng Shi Ling Chuan Xian Li Yi Zhen