The Temple of Potaraka
The Temple is also known as the Lesser Potala Palace.Built within more than 4 years from 1767 to 1771,the temple is situated north of the Mountain Resort.Putuozongsheng is modeled on the Potala Palace in Tibet,and therefore it is also named “Lesser Potala Palace.'The entire temple encompasses 220,000 square metres.It was built by Qing emperor Qianlong to celebrate his 60 th anniversary,empress's 80 th anniversary and to host the upper strata personages of the minority peoples from Mongolia,Qinghai,and Xinjiang who came to join in his birthday celebrations.The temple has a special artistic value.A crystallization of the style and characteristics of ancient Tibetan architecture,the temple is made up of 50 Buddhist halls,scripture-reciting hasll,monks' living quarters,red terraces,white terraces topped with one or five pagodas variable rectangular disposition.The red terrace is 42.5 metres high and 59.7 metres in width.It is the main structure within the temple and imposing.The temple compound is tranquil and peaceful where stand tall pines,cypresses and rockeries,adding solemnity to the ambient atmosphere.
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