Nine dragon screen
Nine Dragon Screen was originally built as a spirit wall to ward off demons and evil spirits. You can not miss this ancient protection facility when you visit the Land of Dragon!
It is one of the three most noted dragon screens in China. The other two are located in the Forbidden City and Beihai Park in Beijing, the capital of China.
Among the three dragon screens, the one in Datong is the largest and enjoys the longest history.
Read more China travel tips on it’s location, history, ticket prices, opening time and more.
Datong Nine Dragon Screen is located within Shanxi Province in Northern China.
In 2001, Datong Dragon Screen was listed as a National Key Cultural Site.
Dragon screen is a kind of screen wall built in front of the door of an ancient architecture to be used as a screen for protection.
Datong Nine Dragon Screen was built in the last few ruling years of Emperor Hongwu during Ming Dynasty, more than 600 years from now.
The screen stands 8 m. (26 ft.) high and is as thick as 2.02 m. (6.6 ft.) and as long as 45.5 m. (149 ft.). It is composed of three parts: the pedestal, the body and the roof.
The body part is carved with nine lively dragons with one golden-scaled, shiny-eyed dragon in the middle and the other eight yellow flying ones distributed beside it in symmetric pattern with their heads pointed East and tails pointed towards the central dragon.
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The nine dragons are carved so vividly that they seem to come to life if you walk on the bridge and look their shadows in the shimmering pool built in front of the screen. The other areas are filled with the images of stones, mountains, grass and water which complement with the nine highly spirited dragons.
The rectangular pedestal is as high as 2.09 (6.86 ft.) and is engraved with 41 pairs of dragons each playing with a pearl.
The narrow middle part is made up of 75 glazed tiles with images of a variety of lively animals such as cows, horses, dogs, deer and rabbits. The roof is also covered with glazed tiles.
Every morning when the sun rises and the wall is partly visible in the mist, the nine dragons seem to be shining and leaping adding to its attractiveness.
Final travel tips for you: Opening hours for Nine Dragon Screen is from 9:00 to 16:50 and the ticket price is 10 RMB (1.65 USD).
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