Xuankong Temple, perched several dozen meters high on the cliffs of Hengshan Mountain for over 1,500 years, is renowned as the “most dangerous temple in China.”
Xuankong Temple, also known as the Hanging Temple is precariously situated on the cliffs of Hengshan Mountain in the city of Datong (Shanxi Province, China). This is the highest and best-preserved wooden architectural structure in China.
From a distance, the temple, weighing several tons, appears to be precariously supported by only a few columns on the towering cliffs. This is why Xuankong Temple is dubbed the “most dangerous temple in China.”
Xuankong Temple has also been selected by Time magazine as one of the 10 “unstable” buildings in the world. However, in reality, the temple is designed to be exceptionally sturdy.
According to historical records, Xuankong Temple was designed and built during the late Northern Wei period (386 – 535) by a monk named Liao Nian.
Throughout its over 1,500 years of history, Xuankong Temple has endured numerous storms and earthquakes. Notably, in the past 40 years, there have been two earthquakes of magnitude 6 or higher, one of which caused a third of the buildings in the nearby Hunyuan County to collapse, yet the temple still stands majestically on the cliffs.
The entire structure of Xuankong Temple consists of 40 halls arranged in three tiers stacked from low to high, with the lowest point approximately 50 meters above the ground and the highest point around 90 meters.
The temple’s architecture is securely supported by 97 beams and 54 columns, all made from Chinese parasol wood. Before use, these beams and columns were soaked in tung oil to prevent termites and decay.
Additionally, most of Xuankong Temple’s area is hidden within the mountain, providing stability to the temple. The surrounding rock layers also act like an umbrella against rain and sun, helping the temple to avoid wood weathering and endure through time.
Xuankong Temple in 1963.
Today, Xuankong Temple on the cliffs of Hengshan is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Shanxi province.
