Nanyao Temple, Changhua City, Changhua County, Taiwán

Nanyao Temple, Changhua City, Changhua County, Taiwán 

Nanyao Temple is one of the many Mazu worship centers that can be found in the Taichung, Changhua, and Nantou region. During the Qing Dynasty, the temple’s Mazu pilgrimage to Ponkan, a village in Chiayi County, was the largest pilgrimage in Taiwan. The temple’s buildings are a hodgepodge of Min-nan, Japanese, Baroque, Greek, and northern Chinese architectural styles. Zhangzhou’s master wood craftsman Tan Ing-pin (1864 – 1944) was commissioned to oversee the construction of Guanyin Hall (the rear hall) during the Japanese colonial period. The Japanese-style structure has a Western colonnade and a Min-nan hip-and-gable roof with double eaves, making it unique among Taiwan’s temple buildings.

The works of many contemporary master craftsmen can be found inside the temple’s halls, including the caisson ceiling and other large-scale woodwork by master carpenter Wang Shu-ga and the woodcarvings resulted from the competition between Quanzhou’s master woodcarver Yang Xiu-xing and other woodcarvers from the nearby village of Tianzhong. These works make Nanyao Temple the most exquisitely decorated temple in Changhua City.

Epic Taiwan Culture & Adventure Route © Monika Newbound