Zhengzhou's 100 Free Treasure Attractions - Qian Chi Tower

Zhengzhou's 100 Free Treasure Attractions - Qian Chi Tower. Located at the top of Dawei Mountain, Xitashan Village, Jiayu Town, Xingyang City, Zhengzhou, Henan Province, it is a hexagonal seven-story pavilion-style brick tower, 15 meters high, built during the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Northern Song Dynasty (AD 1022-1063), commonly known as the 'Empress Cao Tower'. The tower was originally part of the Shengshou Temple complex, but now only the ancient tower and a few Ming and Qing steles remain. The tower faces south with doors on the first and second floors leading to the heart chamber, and false doors from the third to the seventh floors. The outline of the tower body converges in an arc, with a graceful shape, and each layer has overhanging eaves with a flat base built on top. The spire of the tower was restored during the renovation in 1989. The mountain top where Qian Chi Tower is located is surrounded by a circle of stone walls, known as the 'Yue Fo Fortress' built in the tenth year of the Xianfeng Emperor of the Qing Dynasty (AD 1860). The fortress is built according to the mountain terrain, with an irregular plan and a perimeter of about 1.1 kilometers, with gates on the east, west, and south sides. Currently, Qian Chi Tower can be reached by car, but the road to the top of the mountain is narrow and rugged, making it difficult to pass other vehicles and challenging to ascend.