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of the temple complex.
One other positive result of the new development is that the section of Longhua Lu which passes in between the walled temple compound and the pagoda has now been closed to vehicular traffic, unless you count motorcycles, and turned into a pedestrian mall.
Longhua Temple's current structures
The 40 meter high octagonal wooden pagoda, Longhua Ta, has orange walls with red cross timbers, upturned eaves and wood railing balconies at each level, and a metal spiral spire on top. As late as 1934 visitors could still ascend to the top of this tower, but now it is closed and cannot be entered or ascended. The base is encircled by a brick wall with a perpetually locked gate, which keeps admirers at arm's length. Depending on who you believe, it may have been built during the Three Kingdoms, the Bei Song or the late Qing Dynasty. After extensive research into the difangzhi local histories, the author has concluded that the current pagoda may possibly be the same as the Xin Bao Ta first constructed in 1066 by the Song Emperor Ying Zong. Although at that time the temple was named Kong Xiang Si, the Longhua Pagoda's official name has continued to be the Bao Ta to this day. In 1984 the pagoda underwent a massive restoration during which the entire tower was covered with scaffolding, and a giant boom crane dropped a brand new copper spiral ornament onto the tower's roof. Although impressive, Longhua Ta is not the only pagoda in Shanghai, as is sometimes claimed, but is in fact only one of a total of 16 pagodas within the Shanghai Municipality.
The grand outer Shan Men gateway to the temple complex is one of the most impressive sights it has to offer. The five-gate pai lou has a granite stone frame with five wooden double gates, above which are three inscribed wooden signboards, all of which is covered by an enormous three-tiered wooden roof with multiple layers of upturned eaves, itself supported by layers of intricate wooden brackets. The top of the roof is covered with tiles and decorated with dragon-fish ornaments. Each wooden gate is one-foot thick, which should have made the temple impregnable to attack during times of unrest, but unfortunately did not stop the Red Guards in 1966.
Passing through this outer gateway, you enter the first of six