Note: So as not to over-load these image-galleries, I’ve put photos from other shrines at the same town on a separate page, accessed here.
Structure Type: Buddhist Monastery 佛寺, village temple 村廟.
Location: Beijing City, Yanqing District, Yongning Town 北京市延慶區永寧鎮. The monastery is located outside of the south gate of the old walled town, within the southern suburbs 南關.
Period: 19th or early 20th century, based on style.
Artist: Unknown.
Mural Contents: The complex seems to have been converted to a Buddhist monastery quite recently (see below), and thus the present functions of the buildings are different from their historic ones. The southern hall was clearly once a temple to the Dragon Kings 龍王; the two side walls show the procession of these deities out and back from their palace, while the central panel of the rear wall shows the Mother of Waters 龍母 seated surrounded by the Five Dragon Kings 五海龍王. On the right (west) there is another panel which appears to show the God of Wealth 財神, while on the left (east) there is the River God 河神. Both of these identifications are tentative, since the images are not labeled, and in fact they’re difficult to see behind the ugly golden statues now installed there.
These murals are principally interesting for the architectural drawings on the inner sides of the flanking walls, which show the Crystal Palace 水晶宮 with an elaborate ornamental art (pailou 牌樓) on the left, and in perspectival recession within a magical ring of fire on the right. Note also the half-effaced image of a sumptuous opera stage on the bottom register of the right-hand wall. The ceiling panels also contain curious images of women warriors.
A secondary hall in the north-west part of the complex now has Buddhist statues installed in it; what the original function of this room was I’m not sure. The walls have images of hanging scrolls and screens, unfortunately mostly obscured behind the large statues, which are even uglier than the murals.
Other Notes: These murals are ugly and they seem to have been badly repainted in some sections (particularly the faces) at the point where the old temple was repaired; the overall effect is uninspiring. Nevertheless I put them up because of the interesting architectural depictions, which combine intricate drawings of Chinese religions buildings (the temples, pailou, and opera stage) with western-style perspective. The depiction of the Crystal Palace in the Dragon King temple is also interesting – the ring of fire seems to represent a gateway into another world, through which reaches a disembodied “hand of god.” The whole thing is an interesting development in the history of the spatial conception of the Chinese gods – how their world relates to ours. I saw a similar depiction, seemingly from the same time period, in another Dragon King temple in nearby Zhuolu county, but locals did not allow me to photograph it.
Full Gallery
