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Accurate Height of World's Tallest Ancient Wooden Pagoda Obtained
The tallest ancient wooden pagoda in the world, some 944 years old in Yingxian County in central China's Shanxi Province, was lately measured at 65.86 meters in height.
Experts on ancient buildings and archeologists said that the figure was 1.45 meters less than the old datum, but the difference is not surprising considering the different gauging methods and the structural changes in the pagoda.
"The new height was obtained using the latest gauging technology, and the error is so little it could be measured in millimeters," said Cai Zejun, a prominent expert on ancient architecture who also runs a renovation project to protect the wooden pagoda.
Before the new figure was released, people tend to believe that the pagoda stands 67.31 meters high, which was measured in the 1930s by the well-known architect Liang Sicheng.
The pagoda is in serious need of repair, mainly due damage caused by numerous strong earthquakes and artillery attacks. The first two storeys of the pagoda are leaning northeastward, and some of its wooden columns are broken or split.
The increasing occurrence of earthquakes in the area makes it even more urgent to realign and restore the pagoda, said Cai Zejun. As a result, the Chinese government plans to start a massive restoration project to save the pagoda at all cost.
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