Wangmu Palace in Jingchuan

　　

　　The Wangmu Palace in Jingchuan, located on Wangmugong Mountain in Jingchuan County, Gansu Province, is one of the famous Taoist temples in Northwest China.

　　

　　

Wangmugong Mountain is also called Huizhong Mountain. It is said that Emperor Muwang of the Zhou Dynasty (11^th century BC - 256BC) and Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD), who were both believers of Taoism, once visited this place, and Wangmu (the Queen Mother of the West) once hosted a feast for them here. The Wangmu Palace was first constructed on the mountain in the 2^nd century BC, and it was continuously expanded during the following dynasties. By 1522, the buildings had included three temple gates, the Wangmu Palace, the Wenchang Palace, the Sanqing Tower, the Wanghe Tower and the Yuhuang Tower, etc. At the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), most buildings of the Wangmu Palace were destroyed by wars, and only the Grotto of the Wangmu Palace, some ancient bells and stone tablets survived. The Grotto of the Wangmu Palace was engraved according to the mountain's hypsography, and is rectangular with a pole of 12 meters high and 11 meters deep in the center. The stone statues of Buddha figures are inlaid on the central pole and the three walls of the Grotto, including the statues of the One Thousand Buddhas, Hercules, Bodhisattvas and a white elephant that carries a pagoda on its back. Over 200 statues are placed in the grotto in three layers and most of them were made after the 5^th century. The palace has undergone some large-scale renovations, and many pavilions were constructed on the hillsides near the grotto.