Journey Through a Millennium to Find a Tang Dynasty Talent: Chengdu's Wangjiang Tower
Wangjiang Tower is located near Jiuyanqiao Bridge on the Jinjiang River, within Wangjiang Tower Park.
Wangjiang Tower's fame is due to Xue Tao, a talented woman of the Tang Dynasty. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, to commemorate this female poet of Sichuan, a complex of buildings represented by Xue Tao Well and Chongli Pavilion was built here.
Entering the main gate and passing through a dense bamboo forest, you arrive at the former site of the Chengdu First Suburban Park Archway. In 1928, this area was designated as the first suburban park, and in 1953, it was renamed Wangjiang Tower Park.
Walking along the riverbank, you come to the gate of the Xue Tao Memorial Hall, with its red walls and green tiles. A tall ginkgo tree stands in front of the gate. Inside the gate is a courtyard with a white sculpture of Xue Tao. The base of the sculpture is inscribed with "The Female Scholar by the Wanli Bridge," which is the theme of the memorial hall's exhibition.
Xue Tao's ancestral home was in Guanzhong. During the Zhenyuan period of the Tang Dynasty, she frequented the Jiannan Xichuan military governor's office. The office was a gathering place for talented individuals, and Xue Tao established herself there with her talent. She was once recommended for the position of "Xiaoshu Lang" (collating scholar), hence the name "Female Scholar."
At that time, many high-ranking officials, envoys, poets, and scholars who came to Sichuan sought to meet her. Even literary figures and high officials who had never been to Sichuan corresponded with her through poetry and prose.
Xue Tao excelled in calligraphy and enjoyed composing short poems. She created small, colorful stationery at Baihuatan, which was convenient and easy to use, and it quickly became popular. It was widely loved by literati and refined scholars throughout the ages, becoming one of the most famous types of poetry stationery in ancient China.
Coming out of the memorial hall, you arrive at the center of the courtyard, surrounded by several buildings and a few tall ginkgo trees.
The most striking feature is, of course, Wangjiang Tower, which stands in one corner. Its original name is Chongli Pavilion, taken from the phrase "both beautiful and magnificent, truly Chengdu" in the "Ode to Chengdu." It was built in the fifteenth year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty (1889) and stands 27.9 meters tall. At that time, Sichuan was not doing well in the imperial examinations, so this tower was built to promote literary pursuits. Wangjiang Tower is just its common name.
The Xue Tao Well in the courtyard has an even longer history. Because the Ming Dynasty Shu王府 (Prince's Palace) would draw water here every year on March 3rd to imitate Xue Tao's stationery, this well became known as Xue Tao Well and later became a famous attraction of the east gate. In the third year of the Kangxi reign (1664), Chengdu magistrate Ji Yingxiong inscribed the three characters "Xue Tao Well" on a stone, which was placed here. Today, the inscription has been embedded in an archway, becoming a relic for people to pay their respects.
The area around Wangjiang Tower was formerly known as Yunvjin and was a famous ancient ferry crossing for leaving Chengdu since the Song and Yuan dynasties. In the Ming Dynasty, due to Xue Tao Well and Xue Tao's tomb, it gradually became a famous scenic spot at the east gate. During the Qing Dynasty, buildings such as Zhuojin Tower, Yinshi Tower, Huanjian Pavilion, and Leishen Temple were built here. The main body of Leishen Temple is now the Xue Tao Memorial Hall.
Xue Tao's cenotaph was previously located on the Wangjiang Tower campus of Sichuan University. In 1994, it was relocated to Wangjiang Tower Park, in the bamboo forest north of the memorial hall.