Qixia Temple

Qixia Temple is a Buddhist temple located on Qixia Hill in the suburban Qixia District in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, People's Republic of China, 22 kilometres northeast of downtown Nanjing. It is one of Nanjing's most important Buddhist temples. Built in AD 489, the 7th year of the Yongming era during the South Qi Dynasty, the temple is known for its large collection of Chinese Buddhist visual art and sculptural art in the grounds. These consist of pagodas, murals and artwork that date back to the 10th century.

 

Near the temple site and situated on the slopes of Qixia Hill, is the "Thousand Buddha Caves", a grotto containing many Buddhist sculptural works of art. The Buddha's Relics Pagoda is located in the southeast of Qixia Temple.

It was built in 601 and destroyed in the Tang Dynasty. Then in 945, it was rebuilt by Southern Tang Dynasty emperor Li Jing. The pagoda has a 5-story, octagon-shaped structure. It is 18m high and perched on a 2-story stylobate carved with waves and a dash of fish and Chinese flowering crabapples.