Located in the Tidal Bore Viewing Park, the Zhan’ao Pagoda, also known as the Zhenhai Pagoda, is a pavilion-style Buddhist pagoda built for the Tide God. It was originally constructed in the Song Dynasty and rebuilt in the Ming Dynasty, with a history of over 380 years.
It is a typical Chinese pagoda and is considered one of the more exquisite ancient pagodas along the coast of Zhejiang, China. The Zhan’ao Pagoda stands at 40 meters tall, with a circumference of 25 meters. It has a hexagonal base, appears to be seven stories high on the outside, but contains eight levels inside. Made of brick with wooden floors, its design is quite magnificent.
Climbing the Zhan’ao Pagoda to view the tidal bore is a major feature of the Haining Tide spectacle. From the top, one can overlook the ancient city of Yan Guan, with the Yu Huang Mountain in Hangzhou and the Dongshan in Xia Shi faintly visible in the distance.
Related Legend: In ancient Chinese mythology, ‘Ao’ is a giant fish with human-like emotions. Its mood swings can trigger disasters such as tsunamis. The ‘pagoda’ is a sacred Buddhist object, believed to subdue demons and evil spirits. Thus, people built the ‘Zhan’ao Pagoda’ to suppress the giant fish, preventing it from causing trouble and endangering humanity. With the fish at rest, the sea becomes calm, hence the ‘Zhan’ao Pagoda’ is also called ‘Zhenhai Pagoda’. Like the Zhenhai Iron Bull on the sea embankment, it is a creation of ancient Chinese people in pursuit of a better life.
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