Dragon-and-Tiger Pagoda

The Dragon-and-Tiger Pagoda is a stone monument standing about 10.8 meters tall with a single-storey pavilion design featuring a square footprint and a massive central pillar carved from one stone block. The structure sits on a three-tiered Sumeru pedestal decorated throughout with detailed stone carvings of lions and lotus flowers.

The monument was built during the Tang dynasty as a burial shrine for a monk near the former Shentong Temple. Its placement in Nanshan shows how stone structures of this era commemorated important religious figures through architectural commemoration.

The four sides of the central pillar display rectangular doorways holding carved Buddha statues, flanked by relief sculptures showing heavenly beings and mythological creatures from the Tang period.

The structure sits southeast of Jinan and is accessible by car, saving visitors travel time from the city. Access to all four sides allows visitors to examine the carvings and architectural details from different angles.

The massive central pillar is carved from a single cube-shaped stone block measuring 4 meters on each side, a remarkable feat of craftsmanship for its era. This monolithic column carries relief sculptures from the Tang period that were chiseled directly into the stone without separate assembly.