Shanggao Daguan Pagoda

In 1787, the gentry of Shanggao gathered on the south bank of the Jinjiang River to secure their town's spiritual gateway. They raised over ten thousand taels of silver to replace the ruined Feiyue Pavilion with a monument of brick and stone. Completed around 1790, the Daguan Pagoda rose forty-six point five three meters above the water, directly facing Zhuangyuan Island. Its name, meaning Grand View, promised a panoramic gaze over the surrounding mountains.

The structure is an engineering marvel of the Qing Dynasty. An octagonal base of heavy granite blocks anchors seven stories of double-eaved brickwork. Inside, a clockwise spiraling stone staircase climbs within double-layered walls. Visitors ascending this dark passage find light through small windows carved into the shapes of flowers, treasure vases, and clouds. Each floor features a domed ceiling where iron hooks once held hanging lamps. During the Jiaqing Reign, magistrate Liu Bing ordered a perpetual lamp to burn here day and night. Its light shone for miles, guiding river travelers and, according to local belief, illuminating the path to academic success for local scholars.

Human hands left deep marks on this monument. Magistrate Fan Yuanyang, a scholar from Fujian, brushed the calligraphy for the stone plaque above the western main entrance. On the eastern inner wall, a stone niche stands empty, its Buddha statue lost to time. Below, the ground floor's stone Bagua pattern lies fractured, scarred by treasure hunters. Higher up, the eight corners of the lower eaves feature upturned roofs modeled after Ao-fish heads, though their original wind bells are gone. The pagoda also bears the scars of modern conflict. In the 1940s, during the Battle of Shanggao against invading Japanese forces, artillery or gunfire destroyed the original metal finial at the summit.

Today, the pagoda stands protected within a thirty-five hundred square meter zone, anchoring the historic Daguan Old Street. At night, modern light projections illuminate the ancient green bricks, continuing the legacy of Liu Bing's perpetual lamp.