Yuxu Palace玉虚宫
- Type
- Temples and Abbeys (Gongguan)
- Location
- China · Hubei · Danjiangkou, Shiyan · In Laoying township at the northern foot of Wudang Mountains, at the start of the old mountain-ascent path.
- Coordinates
- 32.496, 111.029 Map ↗
- School
- Wudang Xuanwu Lineage, Wudang Daoism
- First built
- 1413 (eleventh year of the Yongle era of the Ming) · Once the largest temple complex on Wudang; destroyed by fire in the tenth year of the Qianlong reign (1745) of the Qing; the site was restored between 2007 and 2012.
- Heritage status
- Ancient Building Complex of the Wudang Mountains, Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National LevelComponent of a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1994)
Overview
Yuxu Palace, in full ‘Xuantian Yuxu Gong,’ was built in the eleventh year of the Yongle reign of the Ming (1413) at the northern foot of Wudang Mountains. It was the largest of the Ming-dynasty Nine Palaces of Wudang, said to have had over two thousand halls and chambers, and served as the general headquarters for the construction of Wudang and a gathering place for Daoist priests; according to one account, the Yongle Emperor conferred on Zhang Sanfeng the title ‘Yuxuzi of Yuxu Gong’ here. A great fire in the tenth year of the Qianlong reign of the Qing (1745) destroyed the halls, leaving only the palace walls, the Jade Belt River, the Imperial Stele Pavilion, and numerous carved stone platform foundations. Protective restoration of the site began in 2007, rebuilding the Yuxu Hall and restoring the layout of the palace gate, the Longhu Hall, and the stele pavilion; two colossal imperial stelae borne on stone tortoises still stand in their original positions within the site. It is today one of the main ruin-sites among Wudang's temple complexes.
Highlights
- Imperial Stele Pavilion (Turtle-Borne Stelae)
- Palace Walls and Jade Belt River
- Carved Stone Platform Foundations