Shanxi, Jincheng, Zezhou

[Zhijiao Sanjiao Temple] is the "crown of wood carvings in southeast Shanxi," an ancient building carved with a carving knife, and was once known as the largest temple outside the south gate of Jincheng. For hundreds of years, the most praised feature of the Sanjiao Temple is its exquisite and complex wood carvings. In traditional concepts, caisson ceilings are a symbol of sacred meaning and can only be used in religious or royal buildings. The treasure flower shape is painted with a Bagua diagram, and the dragon-shaped wood carvings on the central pillar have clearly visible dragon scales, a complicated decorative technique in Chinese wooden architecture. [Zezhou Dai Temple] is also known as Yedi Dai Temple, located in Yedi Village, Nancun Town, Zezhou County, Jincheng City, Shanxi Province. The date of its establishment is unknown, but according to the inscription on the stone pillar, the latest construction date can be traced back to the Song Dynasty. The ancient ginkgo tree at the entrance of the courtyard is unusually thick and is one of the most precious trees in Jincheng, comparable to the ginkgo tree in Tanzhe Temple in Beijing. This ginkgo tree is a single tree that bears fruit, and a branch grows downward beside the trunk, making it look like a "hermaphrodite," which is amazing! (We came late, and all the ginkgo leaves had fallen.) Unlike the common stone lion statues, the stone lions at the entrance have all had their front legs cut off, so the locals call them the "Venus lions" with broken arms. Without the front legs, the whole thing becomes a beautiful arc shape, with a dynamic momentum of leaping into the air.