Dule Temple

The Dule Temple (traditional Chinese: 獨樂寺; simplified Chinese: 独乐寺; pinyin: Dúlè Sì; lit. 'Temple of Solitary Joy') is a Buddhist temple located in Jizhou District of suburban Tianjin, China. The temple is of historical as well as architectural significance. Its oldest surviving buildings are two timber-frame structures, the front gate and the central hall (pavilion) that houses a colossal clay statue of Shiyimian Guanyin, the eleven-headed manifestation of the Bodhisattva Guanyin (Avalokiteśvara). Both structures date back to the Liao dynasty and are among the oldest surviving wooden buildings in China. It was added in 1961 to the National Priority Protected site list as part of the 1st Batch of National Priority Protected Sites.