East Great Mosque of Daxinzhuang

Period: Qing Dynasty Address: Daxinzhuang Village, Xuliang Town, Bo'ai County

The architectural complex of East Great Mosque stretches more than 80 metres from east to west and over 50 metres from north to south, covering an area of more than 4,000 square metres with a total of 102 halls and rooms. Constructed with blue bricks and green glazed tiles, the complex boasts exquisitely carved beams and painted rafters, presenting a magnificent and intact ancient architectural compound.

Buildings along the central axis remain well-preserved. First comes a 1-metre-high moon terrace enclosed by carved stone railings on three sides. Behind the terrace stands a covered corridor with five bays in width and three bays in depth. It has no surrounding walls and is supported by 12 columns. Multi-tiered bracket sets are arranged beneath the eaves: ten sets on the front eave and four sets on each side. The cantilever tips are carved with cloud scrolls, while the bracket heads feature finely carved and painted dragons and phoenixes. Four horizontal tie beams connect the inner and outer brackets. The beam structure consists of three layers: main beam, secondary beam and tertiary beam. All crossbeams, rafters and upturned eaves remain intact. The roof is paved with blue-green glazed tiles, with continuous curved side ridges and sloping corner ridges decorated with mythical beast ornaments.

Adjoining the corridor is the seven-bay prayer hall. With an eave height of 5.5 metres, it spans 30 metres wide and 14 metres deep across three bays. It adopts stacked beams covered with painted decorations. The front side is open without walls, reinforced by horizontal beams and carved brackets. The roof is laid with grey cylindrical tiles fitted with main ridges and side ridges adorned with semi-relief patterns of dragons, lotus flowers and peonies. A precious gourd sits atop the main ridge flanked by dragon finials. It is a gable-roof building, with major structural components dating back to the Ming Dynasty.

Connected to the prayer hall is the mihrab hall, five bays wide (20 metres) and three bays deep (12 metres). Its three-tier beams bear simple painted patterns. The grey cylindrical tile roof has main and side ridges, a central precious gourd, and semi-relief carvings of dragons and peonies.

Right behind the mihrab hall rises an ablution pavilion. Standing 12 metres higher than the main roof and 3 metres wide, it has a hip-and-gable roof covered with blue-green glazed tiles. The precious gourd on the main ridge marks the highest point of the entire mosque. The ridges are decorated with reliefs of dragons, peonies and lotus flowers together with beast ornaments. Colourful multi-tiered brackets with cloud-scroll cantilever tips and painted patterns are installed under the eaves.

These three halls are connected into an interconnected whole for religious worship, capable of holding several thousand worshippers at the same time.

On both sides of the central axis stand ten two-storey scripture-teaching halls with lattice doors and grey cylindrical tile roofs. On the far eastern side are five Arab-style pointed-top bathing rooms, with another six bathing rooms on the northern side. Symmetrically opposite to the bathing rooms on the south are six martial arts training halls for combat practice.

In 2003, the four-bay main gate tower was reconstructed. It features a hip-and-gable roof with upturned corners projecting outward by 2.8 metres. The roof is equipped with main ridges, side ridges, corner ridges and beast ornaments centred on a precious gourd, all covered with green glazed tiles. Square rafters form the upturned eaves, supported by five huge front columns. Eleven sets of multi-tiered brackets are arranged under the eaves, with seven tiers of corner brackets. Vertical and horizontal beams are decorated with painted relief carvings.

The lower beams are carved with openwork hanging floral patterns of peonies and lotus blossoms. The layout, structure and ornamental carvings strictly follow the style of the reconstruction project completed in the fifth year of the Tianqi reign of the Ming Dynasty. Three side halls stand on each side of the gate, roofed with green glazed tiles. Semi-relief floral patterns run along the main and side ridges, and single-tier cloud-scroll brackets are laid under the eaves. The entire gate and side halls are richly painted and grand in momentum.

On June 16, 2008, the People's Government of Henan Province designated this mosque as one of the Fifth Batch of Provincial Key Cultural Relic Protection Units.