[2025 Sanyuan Attraction] Travel Guide for Sanyuan City God Temple (Updated Mar)

Friends, today I'm recommending an amazing place—Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple! This isn't just any ordinary temple; it's a living piece of history! As soon as I entered, I was struck by the ancient architectural style. The flying eaves, intricate brackets, carved beams, and painted rafters—every detail reflects exquisite craftsmanship. The statues enshrined in the main hall are solemn and awe-inspiring. The buildings here are incredibly well-preserved, with every brick and tile seeming to tell an ancient story. What surprised me most was the abundance of cultural exhibitions within the temple, offering insights into local customs and history. When you're tired from exploring, you can rest in the small courtyards within the temple and soak in the charm of the ancient architecture. I highly recommend visiting this place. It's truly a rewarding experience!

Shaanxi Cultural Tourism, you're missing out by not promoting this place!!! This temple is dedicated to the Tang Dynasty war god, Li Jing, the inspiration for the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King. Sanyuan City God Temple, located in the middle of East Street in Sanyuan County, Xianyang City, Shaanxi Province, was first built in the second year of the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty (1369). It now covers an area of 9,500 square meters, with a building area of 5,350 square meters. Facing south, the Sanyuan City God Temple has 115 rooms. A brick-carved screen wall and a wooden archway lead to the temple's sacred path. Further inside, another wooden archway and a stone archway stand before the opera stage, flanked by covered walkways. The offering hall and worship hall are connected. Between the opera stage and the main hall, another wooden archway is erected, with a bell tower and side halls to the east and west. The sleeping hall is located at the northernmost end of the temple, connected to the main hall by a "beamless gate" and the Ming God Pavilion. It is one of the largest and most well-preserved City God temples and ancient building complexes in Shaanxi Province.

🌈 It is said that the wooden archway of Sanyuan City God Temple is decorated with hidden treasures such as stone monkeys, white rabbits, and lotus children. It is said that those who see them will be blessed with wealth and good fortune, adding a lot of fun to the visit. 💢 The temple is the largest Ming and Qing dynasty ancient building complex in Shaanxi and Gansu, with a complete layout and exquisite wood carvings, brick carvings, glazed tiles, and dougong. 💢 The temple enshrines the statue of Li Jing, a famous general of the Tang dynasty, as well as the City God’s wife, the Child-giving Goddess, the Four Heavenly Kings, the God of Wealth, and the Five Gods of Wealth, as well as Han dynasty pottery figurines and Tang dynasty painted pottery figurines. 💢 The ancient building complex adopts a palace-style architectural style, including more than 40 single buildings such as the offering hall, worship hall, and theater building, with a total area of 13,390 square meters. 📌 Tips: Sanyuan City God Temple is free for three days every year on August 15 and one day on the first day of the lunar new year. 📌 Tips: Food recommendations 1. Thousand-layer oil cake (golden oil tower): There is a Zhao family thousand-layer oil cake shop on the west side of the main entrance of Sanyuan City God Temple, which is a popular local snack. 2. Lao Huangjia Food: Located on the southeast side of the intersection of Government Street and Linlu Street, this is a food paradise in Sanyuan, offering thousand-layer oil cakes, zenggao, pig trotters, gnocchi, vegetable boxes, and more. 3. Liao flower candy: There is a small stall selling Liao flower candy on the square south of Sanyuan City God Temple. The candy has a golden crust wrapped in white sesame seeds, and is sweet and crispy. 4. Zhang Laoer Roasted Pig Trotters: Located south of the signal tower at the east end of Jieli Village, Sanyuan County, it is definitely one of the best barbecue places in Sanyuan, especially for its roasted pig trotters, which have a crispy skin and tender meat, leaving a lingering fragrance in your mouth. 5. Bring some local specialties, such as vacuum-packed Yanyousi pig trotters (the main street off the highway is called "Yanyousi Street") and Sanyuan Liao flower candy, which are sold everywhere.

Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple was built in the early Ming Dynasty in the eighth year of the Hongwu period (1375) by order of Zhu Yuanzhang. According to the "Guanzhong Jinshi Ji," the Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple has been repaired and expanded more than 20 times since the Ming Dynasty, including 8 large-scale repairs. The temple complex includes more than 40 single buildings, all with glazed roofs, carved beams, and painted rafters, including a screen wall, wooden archway, Yingmen Gate, east and west corridors, stone archway, theater building, east and west side halls, bell and drum towers, archway, moon platform, main hall, east and west side halls, Mingchui Pavilion, God of Wealth Hall, and sleeping palace. Practical information: Tickets are CNY 40, half price for students. It is about a 1-hour drive north from Xi'an, and there is a free parking lot at the entrance. After leaving the Chenghuang Temple, on the right is Sanyuan's famous food - Zhao's Thousand Layer Oil Cake, CNY 10 per serving, including four golden oil towers, a bowl of soy milk, and a bowl of pickles. The oil tower is soft and not greasy, very delicious. Sanyuan County also has historical buildings such as the former residence of Li Jing and the Zhou Family Courtyard, but they are not as good as the Chenghuang Temple. If you have time, you can visit them together.

👍Recommended Reason: Sanyuan County Chenghuang Temple is a brilliant gem among Chenghuang Temples nationwide, with a beautiful glazed roof and various exquisite brick carvings, stone carvings, and wood carvings. 📍Location: Sanyuan County Chenghuang Temple Square. 🚙Transportation: You can reach it by navigation, and there are two parking lots in the square where you can park for free. 🎠Must-visit Spots: - Glazed Screen Wall: Attached to the walls on both sides of the Eight Trigrams Beamless Gate of the sleeping palace, with exquisite patterns such as "Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl." The sunlight on the little dragons is stunning. - Glazed Roof: Shines brilliantly under the sun, with decorations like chiwen and auspicious beasts that are dazzling. - Brick Carvings: The "Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate" in front of the mountain gate is a masterpiece with a strong sense of three-dimensionality. - Stone Carvings: Exquisite craftsmanship is evident in many places such as the wall base. - Wood Carvings: Distributed in many places, with rich themes and lifelike pictures. - Sleeping Palace: Contains Tang Dynasty relics, and you can see the side of the glazed roof after coming out. 💸Ticket Information: 40 RMB/person, available at the ticket office next to the entrance. Opening hours are 08:00 - 17:00. ❤️Other Tips: After visiting, you can try Zhao's Thousand-layer Oil Tower, which is on the right-hand side after exiting the ancient building. It is said to be a century-old shop.

Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple (No. 33 East Street) Admission is 40 yuan, with a free parking lot at the entrance. Built in the eighth year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty, the temple features a glazed tile roof, soaring eaves, and a golden reflection that is as beautiful as a palace. The glazed components, although slightly inferior to the Feihong Pagoda of the Guangsheng Temple in Hongtong County, Shanxi, are still remarkable. The last chamber, which is close to the entrance, displays the tomb artifacts of Li Shou and Zang Huailiang. The collection is small but exquisite and very lively. It can be said to be the most exquisite Chenghuang Temple in the country and is worth a visit. Do not miss the Zhao family's thousand-layer oil cake to the right of the main gate, and the Old Alley Pig's Trotter Shop across the road from the parking lot. Make sure to try and take some with you.

➡️Date of photography: 2024.5.1 ➡️Navigation: Chenghuang Temple, Sanyuan County, Xianyang City ➡️Ticket: Adult 40 ➡️History: Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple was originally built at the beginning of the Ming Dynasty. In the second year of Hongwu (1369), Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the construction of the Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple. The existing Great Ming Haoming Stele in the temple states 'Sanyuan Chenghuang, wise and upright, holy and unfathomable,' and conferred the title 'Inspector of the People's Chenghuang, Prominent Helper Earl' to the Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple. Under his will, it was supervised and built by his second son, Prince Qin Zhu Su. In the eighth year of Hongwu (1375), the construction of Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple began. Over the Ming Chenghua, Jiajing, Wanli, and the Qing Shunzhi, Kangxi, Qianlong, Daoguang periods, it took more than 500 years to reach its current scale. ➡️Features: Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple arranges more than forty individual buildings such as towers, halls, corridors, and pavilions (wo) in a balanced and symmetrical orthodox manner along the vertical and horizontal axes. All buildings are topped with glazed tiles, with intricately carved beams and painted rafters, a rigorous structure, and a solemn and magnificent appearance. It has the reputation of 'exhausting the skill of carpentry and the ingenuity of construction shapes.'

The Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple was founded in the eighth year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty, commissioned by the Ming Dynasty founder Zhu Yuanzhang, and was overseen to completion by Prince Zhu Shang (pronounced 'shang', meaning 'reward'). It has a history of over 600 years. After more than 20 renovations and expansions, it took over 500 years to reach its current scale. The main buildings of the Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple use strong primary colors, such as the blue and white stone bases and railings, vermilion walls, eaves painted with cool shades of blue and green, and the roof's glazed tiles in yellow and green. These contrasting bright colors make the entire building look magnificent and dazzling.

The Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple | With utmost effort in construction and the ultimate skill in craftsmanship, the Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple was founded in the eighth year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty, commissioned by Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang. It was completed under the supervision of Prince Zhu Shang (pronounced 'shang', meaning 'reward'), and it has a history of over 600 years. After more than 20 renovations and expansions over a period of more than 500 years, it has reached its current size. The main buildings of the Sanyuan Chenghuang Temple use strong primary colors, such as the blue and white stone bases and railings, the vermilion walls, the eaves painted with cool shades of blue and green, and the roof's glazed tiles in yellow and green. These contrasting vibrant colors make the entire building appear magnificent and dazzling.