Zixiao Palace (Purple Cloud Palace)紫霄宫
- Type
- Temples and Abbeys (Gongguan)
- Location
- China · Hubei · Danjiangkou, Shiyan · At the foot of Zhanqi Peak, Wudang Mountains.
- Coordinates
- 32.431, 111.029 Map ↗
- School
- Wudang Xuanwu Lineage, Wudang Daoism, Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) Daoism, Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) Daoism
- First built
- 1119 (first year of the Xuanhe era of the Song) · Rebuilt under the Yuan; greatly expanded in the eleventh year of the Yongle reign (1413) of the Ming; further extended during the Jiajing reign.
- Heritage status
- Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level (1982)Component of a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1994)
Overview
Zixiao Palace is one of the best-preserved and largest temple complexes on Wudang Mountains. Set against Zhanqi Peak, it was first built in the first year of the Xuanhe era of the Song (1119) and expanded to its present layout in the eleventh year of the Yongle reign of the Ming (1413), when it was granted the title ‘Taixuan Zixiao Gong.’ The complex rises in tiers with the terrain; along its central axis stand the Longhu Hall, the Stele Pavilion, the Shifang Hall, the Zixiao Main Hall, and the Hall of the Parents. The Zixiao Main Hall, a large timber-frame structure with a double-eaved hip-and-gable roof, is the largest surviving hall on Wudang Mountains and houses Ming-dynasty images of Zhenwu and other deities. The palace preserves imperial stelae from the Yongle and Jiajing reigns, along with a large number of Ming-dynasty bronze and wood-carved images of deities and Daoist ritual implements. The Wudang Mountains Taoist Association is headquartered here, and the palace serves as the center of Daoist activity on Wudang Mountains and a site for the transmission of Wudang Daoist music.
Highlights
- Zixiao Main Hall
- Imperial Stele Pavilion (Turtle-Borne Stele)
- Hall of the Parents
- Ming-Dynasty Deity Images
- Wudang Daoist Music