Golden Temple
The Ming Dynasty Golden Temple is the most unique and well-known structure in the park. It, like Taihe Temple, is a Taoist temple. However, the special thing about Jindian is the architecture. The walls, sixteen pillars, rafters, roof tiles, altar, statues, altar-hanging, the horizontal inscribed board, the table and even the banner on the right in front of the temple are all made from bronze. The whole temple weighs more than 280 tons, making it not only one of the four largest bronze temples in China, but also the heaviest and best-preserved.
On a mountain named Mt. Mingfeng (singing phoenix) or Mt. Yingwu (parrot) in the northeastern suburb of Kunming City, there is a Taoist temple named Taihe Gong (the Palace of Supreme Harmony). The big brass temple inside shines brightly in sunlight and makes the trees around golden. Therefore it got its name of Golden Temple.
This temple was first built in the 30th Wanli year of the Ming Dynasty (1602). In the 10th year of the reign of Emperor Chongzhen (1637), the brass temple was moved to Mt. Jizu, Binchuan, Dali. In the 10th year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty (1671), Wu Sangui (1612-1678, the governor of Yunnan), titled King of Pingxi, rebuilt a brass temple on Mt. Mingfeng, which is the present Golden Temple.
Golden Temple is the largest brass construction in China. It is 6.7 meters high, 7.8 meters wide, and 7.8 meters deep. It has 16 pillars and 36 lattice doors. The whole brass temple weighs more than 250 tons. Enshrined right in the center of the hall is the statue (in sitting posture) of Zhenwu, North God of Taoism; and on their left and right are the two generals, tortoise and snake (all the divine statues are brass statues). The brass flags of the sun, the moon and the seven stars stand in the front of the hall.
In 1982, the Chinese State Council confirmed Golden Temple as a major historical and cultural site.
How to Get There?
Bus routes: No. 10, 7 and 1 buses run to Golden Temple. Tourists can also go there by taxi. The price is 20 yuan from the downtown. The cableway also leads to Golden Hall from the World Horticulture Expo Garden.
Opening Hours
- Open time:08:30-18:00
- Tour time:2hs
More Tips
- Best tourist time: at the end of winter and the beginning of spring, when the camellia flowers bloom. First planted in Yunnan 500 years ago, Camellia is one of the eight famous flowers in Yunnan and the city flower of Kunming. In Yunnan, there are thousands of pots of camellias.
- Accommodation: tourists can stay overnight in the holiday village located on the mountain behind Golden Temple and go back to Kunming on the second day. It is 5 km from Golden Temple to the Wild Duck Holiday Village, and tourists can go there by carriage running between the two places.