The Lingxiao Pagoda, standing beside the Tianning Temple in central Zhengding, is the most structurally unusual of the town's four pagodas. Built in 1045 during the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Northern Song dynasty, its lower four storeys are solid brick construction while the upper storeys shift to timber framing — a combination that was fashionable in the Song period but has survived in very few examples. The full height is 42 metres.
The timber upper sections give the pagoda a lighter, more graceful silhouette than a purely brick structure of similar height would have, and the overhanging eaves of each storey cast dramatic shadows in the afternoon light. The brickwork of the lower section is decorated with carved Buddhist figures and reliefs that reward close attention. It is worth visiting both this pagoda and the Xumi Pagoda on the same circuit to see the two architectural approaches — Tang austerity and Song elaboration — side by side.