Xuanmiao Temple 玄妙观

Xuanmiao Temple, located on Guanqian Street in Suzhou City, was founded in the second year of Xianning in the Western Jin Dynasty (276) and was initially named "Zhenqing Daoist Temple". It was renamed "Xuanmiao Temple" during the Yuan Dynasty. In the early Qing Dynasty, to avoid the name taboo of Emperor Kangxi (whose given name was Xuanye), it was changed to "Yuanmiao Temple". In 1912, it was restored to its former name "Xuanmiao Temple". At its peak, Xuanmiao Temple had more than 30 halls and was one of the largest Taoist temples in the country at that time. Currently, Xuanmiao Temple consists of a mountain gate, a main hall (Sanqing Hall), an auxiliary hall (Milaobao Pavilion), and 21 auxiliary halls.

Sanqing Hall is the main hall in the overall architectural complex of Xuanmiao Temple. The entire building has a complete structure, is solemn and majestic, and embodies a unique architectural group style.

It is recorded that the Sanqing Hall was built along with the founding of Xuanmiao Temple. The main structure of the existing Sanqing Hall was rebuilt in the sixth year of Chunxi in the Southern Song Dynasty (1197). It was redesigned by Zhao Bozhong, the provincial judicial commissioner at that time, presented to Emperor Xiaozong, and the emperor personally wrote and awarded the plaque "Golden Palace Liaoyang Hall". In the 18th year of Zhiyuan in the Yuan Dynasty (1281), it was 诏令 to be renamed "Sanqing Hall". The hall has undergone numerous renovations during the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, but its structure still retains the style of the Southern Song Dynasty.

Sanqing Hall has 9 bays in width, 6 bays in depth, a height of about 30 meters, and a construction area of 1,125 square meters. It has a double-eave gable and hip roof, being towering and magnificent, and is the largest existing Song Dynasty wood-structured Taoist temple in the Jiangnan region. On the xumizuo (a kind of pedestal in traditional architecture) in the hall, there are three 17-meter-high clay statues covered with gold foil, with Yuanshi Tianzun in the middle, and Lingbao Tianzun and Daode Tianzun on both sides, commonly known as the "Three Pure Ones". The statues are tall and solemn, and are among the finest Taoist statues of the Song Dynasty. Among the Three Pure Ones, Daode Tianzun is also known as "Taishang Laojun", said to be Laozi Li Er. On the base of his statue, there is a stone carving of Laojun's image, which was painted by Wu Daoxuan of the Tang Dynasty, praised by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, written by Yan Zhenqing, and copied and carved by Zhang Yundi, a master stone carver of the Song Dynasty. It can be called a "four-masterpiece" stele and is one of the only two existing steles with Laozi's image in China. The west mountain wall of Sanqing Hall has 60 large bluestone hexagonal columns, each side carved with an image of Tianzun, totaling 360 images, corresponding to the number of days in a year.

Sanqing Hall is the core of Xuanmiao Temple and a treasure of ancient Chinese architecture. In 1936, the famous ancient architecture expert Liu Dunzhen, through surveys and textual research combined with documentary materials, scientifically determined that Sanqing Hall was indeed built in the Southern Song Dynasty, revealing its important value in the history of architecture and attracting people's high attention and concern. In 1982, Sanqing Hall was listed as a national key cultural relics protection unit by the State Council. Luo Zhewen, a famous expert on cultural relics and ancient architecture, also said, "Sanqing Hall is the largest existing Song Dynasty building in China."