Shanxi Highlights

Shanxi Province Essentials

Shanxi Province serves as a living museum of Chinese history, housing the highest concentration of pre-Yuan dynasty wooden architecture. This collection highlights the Northern Wei dynasty's artistic peak at the Yungang Grottoes and the Ming and Qing dynasty urban planning of Pingyao Ancient City. Significant sites include the 5th-century Hanging Temple, the 1056 Sakyamuni Wooden Pagoda—the world’s oldest multi-story wooden structure—and the sacred Buddhist peaks of Mount Wutai.

McKay Savage / CC BY 2.0

Yungang Grottoes

The Yungang Grottoes, formerly the Wuzhoushan Grottoes, are ancient Chinese Buddhist temple grottoes built during the Northern Wei dynasty…

Gisling / CC BY 3.0

Ancient City of Pingyao

Pingyao, officially Pingyao Ancient City, is a settlement in central Shanxi, China, famed for its importance in Chinese economic history…

Zhangzhugang / CC BY-SA 3.0

Hanging Temple

The Hanging Temple, also Hengshan Hanging Temple, Hanging Monastery or Xuankong Temple is a temple built into a cliff near Mount Heng in…

Peellden / CC BY 3.0

Wooden Pagoda of Ying County

The Sakyamuni Pagoda of Fogong Temple of Ying County, Shanxi province, China, is a wooden Chinese pagoda.

Angus Cepka / CC-BY-SA-3.0

Wutai Shan North Terrace

Mount Wutai, also known by its Chinese name Wutaishan and as Mount Qingliang, is a sacred Buddhist site at the headwaters of the Qingshui…

Gisling / CC BY 3.0

Qiao Family Compound

The Qiao Family Compound, originally the Zaizhong Hall and officially Qiao's Grand Courtyard, is a courtyard house located in Qi County,…

Roland Longbow / CC BY-SA 3.0

Shanxi museum

The Shanxi Museum is the largest museum and cultural building in the province of Shanxi, China.

Zhangzhugang / CC BY-SA 3.0

Wang Family Courtyard

The Wang Family Compound is the largest of the Shanxi Courtyard Houses.

Angus Cepka / CC-BY-SA-3.0

Foguang Temple

Foguang Temple is a Buddhist temple located five kilometres from Doucun, Wutai County, Shanxi Province of China.

Artsxiang / CC BY-SA 3.0

Guangsheng Temple

The Guangsheng Temple is a Buddhist temple, located at the southern foot of Mt. Huoshan, 17 km northeast of Hongtong County, Shanxi, China.

Gomeying / Public domain

Guandi Temple

Haizhou Emperor Guan Temple, or Haizhou Guandi Temple, is a temple located in Haizhou Town, Yanhu District, Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province.

Nine dragons wall

Dating to 1392 during the Ming Dynasty, this 45-meter-long glazed tile screen is the largest and oldest of China's three famous Nine Dragon Walls. It originally served as a spirit wall for the palace of the Prince of Dai.

Shakti / CC-BY-SA-3.0

Shuanglin Temple

The Shuanglin Temple is a large Buddhist temple in the Shanxi Province of China.

Huayan Monastery

Established during the Liao Dynasty, this Buddhist complex features the Mahavira Hall, one of China's largest wooden temple halls. The Lower Huayan Monastery contains the Bojiajiaocang Hall, housing 31 well-preserved Liao-era clay statues and an intricate two-story wooden library.