Baochu Pagoda

Baochu Pagoda stands atop Baoshi Hill on the northern shore of West Lake in Hangzhou's Xihu District, built originally in 968 CE during the Wuyue kingdom period, reportedly commissioned to pray for the safety of a king traveling to the imperial Song court. The original brick-and-wood structure suffered fire damage and multiple collapses over the centuries; the slender form seen today is a much narrower, solid brick reconstruction completed in 1933, replacing a heavier Ming-era pagoda that had become structurally unsound. Unlike most Chinese pagodas, the interior of Baochu Pagoda is not hollow and cannot be climbed, functioning instead as a landmark silhouette against the hill's exposed red sandstone outcrops. Its slim nine-storey profile, visible from much of West Lake's northern shore, has made it one of the most recognized visual symbols of Hangzhou alongside the Leifeng and Six Harmonies pagodas. The surrounding hillside park preserves informal walking paths first laid out during the Republican era, along with scattered rock inscriptions from earlier Qing-dynasty visitors. Because the pagoda is viewed only from the exterior, its historical value lies chiefly in its long, repeatedly rebuilt presence on the West Lake skyline rather than in any surviving interior artwork.