The Buddha Incense Pavilion

The Buddha Incense Pavilion is located on the front mountain platform of Wanshou Mountain in the Summer Palace, Haidian District, Beijing, overlooking Kunming Lake and the Paiyun Hall to the south, and adjacent to the Buddhist structure 'Sea of Wisdom' to the north. It was originally built in the 16th year of Emperor Qianlong's reign during the Qing Dynasty (1751), but was destroyed by the Anglo-French allied forces. It was rebuilt in the 20th year of Emperor Guangxu's reign (1894). The Buddha Incense Pavilion stands 36 meters tall on a 21-meter-high platform; it has three stories, an octagonal shape, and four layers of eaves with a gathered spire top. Inside the pavilion, there are eight massive iron pear wood columns that support the structure, which has a complex interior architecture. The pavilion houses a bronze statue of the Thousand-Handed Guanyin Bodhisattva, which is wrapped in gold. During the reign of Emperor Guangxu (1875—1908), Empress Dowager Cixi would visit the Buddha Incense Pavilion every month to burn incense and worship Buddha.