Sizhou Pagoda
The oldest surviving structure in Huizhou West Lake. Built in the Ming Dynasty, this seven-storey brick pagoda on West Mountain offers stunning sunset views and inspired Su Dongpo's famous "jade tower" poem.
- City
- Huizhou
- Address
- Xishan (West Mountain), Huizhou West Lake, Huicheng District, Huizhou City, Guangdong Province, China
- Cost
- Free
泗洲塔.jpg
Overlooking the shimmering waters of Huizhou West Lake, the Sizhou Pagoda is the oldest surviving architectural structure in the entire scenic area. For over 400 years, its elegant, seven-storey silhouette has been the defining landmark of the lake, inspiring poets, painters, and pilgrims alike.
## History
### Tang dynasty genesis
The pagoda's story begins in the Tang Dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Zhongzong (705–710 AD) .
At that time, a Buddhist monk named Sizhou (or Sangha) was venerated across southern China. Local believers erected a wooden pagoda on West Mountain to honour him and to serve as a spiritual beacon for the lake. That original structure, like many wooden buildings from that era, was eventually lost to fire and the passage of centuries.
For the next 800 years, the mountain stood without a pagoda, although the site remained sacred in local memory.
Ming dynasty rebirth
It was under Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty (1573–1620) that the pagoda rose again. A local official and devout Buddhist, Ye Mengxiong, championed the reconstruction (1589-1598). He raised funds, gathered stonemasons, and oversaw the building of an entirely new pagoda, this time in solid brick, designed to endure.
In 2012, Sizhou Pagoda was officially designated a Guangdong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit , affirming its historical and architectural significance.
About Ye Mengxiong
A native of Huizhou and a Ming Dynasty jinshi scholar, Ye Mengxiong 叶梦熊 began his career as a civil official known for his unwavering integrity. He later rose to fame as a brilliant military commander, famously crushing the Ningxia Rebellion in 1592 at the age of 62.
Beyond his strategic genius, he also invented the, a mobile heavy cannon that became a Ming superweapon called Ye Shen Chong or Qing Che (轻车 = light car).
lightwarcart.jpg
#### Representation of the Ye Mengxiong's Qing Che, Public Domain
After retiring from military service, he returned to his hometown and personally funded the reconstruction of Sizhou Pagoda on West Mountain, the very pagoda that still stands today.
His extraordinary legacy blends poetry with warfare, earning him recognition as both a national hero and a beloved local benefactor.
Su Dongpo and the Jade Tower
The pagoda's poetic fame rests squarely on the shoulders of China's most beloved literary exile, Su Dongpo . During his banishment to Huizhou, Su often climbed West Mountain to gaze at the moon over the lake. One night, he composed a poem describing the scene. The lines that immortalised the pagoda are these :
- 一更山吐月 With first watch, the mountain gives birth to the moon
- 玉塔卧微澜 the jade tower lies amid ripples
The sentence Jade Tower 玉塔 stuck. From that moment on, Sizhou Pagoda was no longer just a religious structure but alsp a living image in China's poetic imagination.
Many later writers noted how the scene evoked memories of Hangzhou's West Lake, with its Leifeng Pagoda reflected in the water.
### Opening Hours
Opened daily
08:00 am - 22:00 pm (last entry 21:30)
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