Botou Mosque

Opening Hours: 8:00 – 18:00 Ticket Price: 8 yuan per person for the main entrance ticket Contact: 0317-5566955, Botou City, Cangzhou, Hebei Province Best Time to Visit: Cangzhou is located on the coast of Bohai Bay in southeastern Hebei Province. It features a typical warm temperate semi-humid continental monsoon climate with cold winters, hot summers and four distinct seasons. The annual average temperature is about 12℃, and autumn is the best time for a visit. Complaint Hotline: 0317-2080122

Transportation Guide: Take the Beijing-Shanghai Railway and alight at Botou Railway Station. If driving, exit the Beijing-Shanghai Expressway at Nanpi Interchange and travel 5 kilometers west. National Highway 104 and Wuqiang-Huanghua Port Road run through the city.

The mosque was first built during the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty. It underwent multiple renovations in the Jianwen, Yongle and Wanli periods, and was notably expanded in the Chongzhen reign, growing into a magnificent architectural complex.

Legend has it that in the late Ming Dynasty, Emperor Chongzhen had a large quantity of high-quality timber transported north via the Grand Canal from southern China to renovate the Imperial Palace. When the timber ships reached Fengjiakou of Botou, Li Zicheng’s peasant rebel army had already captured Beijing. Two Hui officials serving in Botou at that time — Shi Sanwei, a censor, and Yu Jideng, Minister of Rites — used the timber to renovate the mosque.

Botou Mosque is famous nationwide for its grand scale and distinctive architectural style. Facing east, the main gate is modeled after the Meridian Gate of the Forbidden City in Beijing.

In the front courtyard stand free schools on both the north and south sides. At the center rises a 20-meter-high two-storey Moon Viewing Tower, also known as the Bangke Tower. Past the tower lie side halls on the north and south in the middle courtyard. Ascending the steps, you will see the exquisite Flower Hall Pavilion, adorned with delicate wood carvings and paintings. Its widely extended eaves are typical of Ming-dynasty wooden architecture.

The grand main prayer hall occupies the center of the rear courtyard. Combining front, middle and rear sections as a whole, it covers an area of 1,950 square meters. The hall boasts upturned eaves on all sides and paired corner pavilions. Its rear chamber is square, topped with a hexagonal pavilion. The ceiling is constructed with square timbers into an intricate caisson design, adding to the hall’s solemn aura.

Viewing the entire compound, towers, pavilions and halls line up in neat rows, with courtyards nested one within another. Gateways and stone bridges are arranged horizontally, presenting a symmetrical, harmonious, solemn and stately layout.