Chengtian Temple

Chengtian Temple is a Tang-dynasty Buddhist temple in the heart of Quanzhou's old town, famous for its preserved Song-dynasty architecture and for the ancient banyan tree in its courtyard whose roots have grown to cover a large section of the outer wall. The main hall retains original timber framing, and the stone pavement of the courtyard shows the patina of a thousand years of use.

The temple is quieter than Kaiyuan and gives a more intimate sense of daily Buddhist practice in the city. The surrounding old town streets — narrow lanes with stone-paved surfaces and traditional shophouses — are some of the best preserved in southern Fujian. The temple is five minutes on foot from the Qingjing Mosque, making the two an easy combination.

things to do sight
A story
Chengtian Temple was the site of the first European mission in Quanzhou — a Franciscan friary established in 1310 by Italian friars under Andrew of Perugia, who served as Bishop of Zayton (the medieval name for Quanzhou). Andrew's letters back to Italy, describing the freedom to preach in a city where "almost every nation under heaven" was represented, are among the earliest eyewitness accounts of medieval China by a Western visitor. The friary is long gone; the Buddhist temple that now occupies the site has no connection to it beyond the ground.