Located in the beautiful Square Pagoda Garden, the Square Pagoda of Songjiang got is name for the building is square. Except the storeys from the 7th to the 9th, which were reconstructed in the Qing Dynasty, the pagoda basically retained its original components in the Song Dynasty, especially the bracket system, over 60% of which are the Song objects. A great part of the pagoda was built with the woodwork techniques of the Tang and Five Dynasties. It is one of the ancient pagodas that retain the most original components in southern China. In 1996, it was announced as a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level.
The 9-storey Square Pagoda looks tall and slender, about 42.5 metres high. It is the second highest existing pagoda in Shanghai. The pagoda was built in the Northern Song Dynasty, but largely inherited the shape and structure of the brick pagoda and architectural style of the Tang Dynasty. The side length of the ground floor is 6 metres and the length decreases storey by storey upward. The outer wall of the brick pagoda is “brick with wood”, and a rectangular cross beam is embedded every five or six to more than ten brick layers to strengthen the wall. Each side of the pagoda is divided into three bays by brick colums, with the Kunmen set in the centre. Each floor is built with wooden flat seats and railings, supported by wooden bracket system. The stairs on the ground floor are built in the arcade, and the stairs from the second floor and up are in the body of the pagoda. The top floor is the conical roof. The 13-metre wooden pagoda core column is supported at the eighth floor and sticks more than 8 metres above the roof. It is covered with iron pagoda spine, and installed with statue seat, amrta-kalasa and other Buddhist components. There are four iron cables dragging from the spire to the eaves corner of the top floor. Copper bells are set at the four corners of the eaves, to keep the birds from making nests on the pagoda.
The pagoda went through many times of betterment in the Southern Song, Yuan and Ming Dynasties, and was heavily repaired in the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. In the process of rebuilding from 1974 to 1977, a lot of relics of the Song Dynasty were discovered and some original Song components were kept. In 1978, the Shanghai Landscape Bureau built the Songjiang Fang Ta Park with the Square Pagoda as its main building.
上海这座国际大都会,百年来向以高楼大厦著称,假设我们穿越回公元10世纪,去寻找这片土地上的最高建筑,大概非龙华寺内的龙华塔莫属。
龙华寺的历史渊源颇为传奇。据清人张宸记载,三国吴赤乌五年(242年),来自西域的康僧会在从交趾前往建业(今南京)的路上过龙华荡,见“水天一色,藻荇交横”,是“尘辙不到,颇宜清修”之地,遂在此“建立茅茨,设像行道”。后康僧会到建业觐见了吴主孙权,又获赐修建13座舍利佛塔。
此后一千多年来,龙华寺几度重建,历经衰荣。现存的龙华寺建筑群主体建于清同治、光绪年间,保存了宋代禅宗的“伽蓝七堂制”。中轴线上有牌坊、山门,第一进为弥勒殿,两侧为三重飞檐的钟楼、鼓楼,第二进为天王殿,第三进是面阔五间的大雄宝殿,第四进为三圣殿,第五进为方丈室,第六进为藏经楼,其中大雄宝殿、三圣殿为重檐歇山顶,气势恢弘。1959年,龙华寺被列为上海市文物保护单位。
龙华塔与龙华寺相对而立,其塔身、塔基为北宋所建原物,距今已有一千余年历史。20世纪20年代,其平座、栏杆曾被施以钢筋水泥,1954年,经历重修,恢复了原貌。
龙华塔为楼阁式砖木结构,七级八面,塔高40.347米。塔身外壁为八角形,砖砌角柱。塔身内为方室,底层高大,向上各层面积与高度逐渐收缩,形成密檐。每层四面设壸门,四面有壁龛,且逐层转换,使外立面上各层门窗依次变换。各层楼板下隐出砖栱,栱头卷刹分三瓣,外檐转角铺作鸳鸯交首栱,底层围廊柱子的柱头呈梭状,枋上有七朱八白之装饰。龙华塔的基础采用木桩加木承台的方式,体现了工匠在软土地基上建高层建筑的智慧。2006年,龙华塔被公布为全国重点文物保护单位。
龙华塔和龙华寺是龙华的标志和中心
The Longhua Pagoda and Longhua Temple are the symbols and centres of Longhua.