Longhua Pagoda, also called Zhensi
Pagoda, is located in Longhua County, Shanghai City. The exact construction time
of the Pagoda is not known yet.
Longhua Pagoda, with a wood-and-brick
structure, has seven storeys totally 40.64 meters high, with an external
octagonal form and internal square attic form. Inside the Pagoda, there are four
doors on the four walls and four niches on the other four walls but without
Buddha statues in the niches. There are wooden floor slabs and staircases on
each floor, with extruding brick arches under the floor slabs. A double arch is
installed at the corner of the outer eaves and pillars in the shape of wooden
rafters support the bottom corridors. There are decorative patterns on square
timbers and the bottom of the pillars is in the shape of a profile of a
seven-stringed plucked musical instrument.
When Longhua Pagoda was repaired in 1954,
the underground hall was excavated out and the brick foundation of the Pagoda
became outstanding. The brick foundation has 20 layers of bricks of 0.335 meters
long, 0.16 meters wide and 0.075 meters thick each. Under the foundation there
is a layer of stow-wood of 0.13 meters thick, and spiles of 0.14 กม 0.18 meters
are found under the stow-wood. In regard to Longhua Pagoda, there are many
legends such as the one about gold carps appearing in the plate on the top of
the Pagoda.
In 1984, Longhua Pagoda underwent a
large-scale renovation. The center pillar was restored, and a new pagoda top
consisting of 18 components with a weight of about 4.5 tons was installed. After
the renovation, Longhua Pagoda looks even more simple and
towering.