Qiongtai Temple

Qiongtai Temple
Qiongtai Temple is located about 10 kilometers southeast of Tianzhu Peak on Wudang Mountain, with a vertical elevation difference of 1,350 meters. It is divided into upper, middle, and lower temples. In the Yuan Dynasty, it was called “Qiongtai Palace.” During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, it was expanded to 24 Taoist courtyards, forming an architectural complex connected by pavilions and bridges, making it one of the largest among Wudang Mountain’s 36 temples. The remaining buildings include reconstructed temple houses from the Qing Dynasty and a stone hall from the Yuan Dynasty. It serves as the starting point of the Wudang Mountain passenger cableway and is now an important tourist hub. According to records, the Great Emperor Zhenwu was conferred the title of Emperor of the North Pole and Xuan Tian by the Jade Emperor here, hence it is regarded as a sacred Taoist site.
The three temples are also known as “White Jade Tortoise Platform,” “Purple Yue Qiongtai,” and “Jade Le Xiao Tai” respectively. The middle temple preserves a bluestone hall from the Yuan Dynasty, housing a stone statue of Xuanwu, with a floor area of 18 square meters; the upper temple retains stone inscriptions from the Ming Dynasty and the ruins of a stone statue of Xuanwu; the lower temple preserves the main hall and auxiliary rooms from the Qing Dynasty. In 1856 (the 6th year of the Xianfeng reign), the temple buildings were destroyed by war, and partial reconstruction was carried out during the Guangxu reign. Currently, a statue of the Great Emperor Zhenwu stands on the platform in front of the Ancestral Hall in the middle temple. The side halls on both sides enshrine Guanyin, Bixia Yuanjun, and the Three Stars of Fu, Lu, and Shou respectively. The walls of the Yuan Dynasty stone hall are nearly 1 meter thick, completely retaining the structural characteristics of bluestone.