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Small Wild Goose Pagoda

Small Wild Goose Pagoda

Photo: Guucancat · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Location
Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
Client / Owner
Emperor Zhongzong of Tang
Year
Completed 709
Access
Tickets required
Typology
Spiritual

The Small Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi'an was built from 707 to 709 under Emperor Zhongzong of Tang, who donated his residence for a temple founded in 684 after Emperor Gaozong's death. The article names no architect. It is a Tang brick pagoda with a square base and densely tiered eaves, less massive than the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda.

A brick frame surrounds a hollow interior, and green stone north and south doorframes are carved with Buddhist motifs. The original height was 15 stories and 148 feet (45 m). The current height is given as 43 m (141 ft) in one passage and 43.3 m (142 ft) in another. The base is about 37 feet (11.38 m) per side.

The 1556 Shaanxi earthquake destroyed the upper two stories, leaving 13. A Jin-dynasty bell of 1192, 3.55 m tall, was moved to a nearby bell tower. UNESCO listed it in 2014. It stands within the Xi'an Museum grounds.

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