Following a trek of just 1.2 kilometers which took five months
to complete the 3,500-ton Ciyuan Temple is on solid ground again,
an official in central China's Henan Province said on Thursday.
Those responsible for relocating the three, 1,500-year-old
temple buildings said the operation was like "moving a plate of
sand".
The Ciyuan Temple complex in Linzhou of Henan was built at the
beginning of the Tang Dynasty (627-649) and renovated during the
Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
It's the first time ever that an ancient temple in China has
been lifted off its foundations and moved intact to a new
location.
The move was necessary to make way for the Anyang-Linzhou
Highway which runs between coal mines in the area. "The move had
many unprecedented difficulties," said Du Qiming, director of the
Henan Research Institute of Ancient Architecture Protection who
were responsible for the project.
Those involved in the move had to steer the brick and wooden
temple which is nine meters tall around 13 bends and over
undulating ground.
(Xinhua News Agency June 9, 2006)