Brief introduction of Liaocheng tower

It is located in the southeast corner of longxing temple, lord protector, beside the Jinghang Ancient Canal in Dongguan, Liaocheng, Shandong, which is known as "Jiangbei Water City". There is no written record of the construction time of this tower. Presumably during the Southern Song Dynasty or Liao and Jin Dynasties. 1973, government funding for reconstruction. During the construction, stone envelopes were found on the five-story tower and pedestal, and many bronze bodhisattvas, porcelain vases and ancient coins from the Song and Yuan Dynasties were displayed outside the stone envelopes. There is a small silver coffin in the letter, which contains the monk's ashes and relics. There is an inscription on the outside of the stone letter, which shows that the original iron tower collapsed in Yongle period of Ming Dynasty, and was rebuilt with donations from monk Dening, the capital of Dongchangfu, and the abbot of longxing temple in Tianshun period. The tower body is cast with 13 layers of pig iron, and the height is about 15.8 meters. The base under the tower covers an area of 16 square meters, including stone carvings, Buddhist reliefs, peacocks, unicorns, dragons and phoenixes, musicians and dancers. There are doors, windows, arches, tiles and eaves around the tower. Sightseeing only, not climbing. 1977, the iron tower was announced as a key cultural relics protection unit in Shandong province. In 2006, the iron tower was announced as the sixth batch of national key cultural relics protection units. The era is Song. Liaocheng has a well-known folk song: "Dongchangfu has three treasures, the iron tower, the Gu Lou and the Jade Emperor are high." Known as one of the three treasures, the iron tower is located on the west bank of Dongguan Canal in Liaocheng, the southeast corner of longxing temple, lord protector. No one remembers the tower itself, and there is no record in local literature. From the analysis and comparison of the shape and relief style of the tower, it was built in the early Northern Song Dynasty and is the oldest existing building in this city.