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Daqin Pagoda (大秦塔) in Chang'an, Shaanxi Province, located about two kilometres
to the west of Lou
Guan Tai temple[1],
is the remnant of the earliest surviving Christian church in China. The church and the
monastery were built in 640 by
members of the Assyrian Church of the
East, also referred to as the Nestorian church. Though
Daqin is the name for
the Roman Empire
in early Chinese language documents of the
first and second century,[2] by
the mid-ninth century it was also used to refer to the mission
churches of the Syriac Christians.[3]
History
Persecution of Christians in
China led to the abandonment of Daqin in about 845.[3]
Much later, in 1300, a Buddhist temple was installed in the pagoda. An earthquake severely damaged the pagoda in
1556 and it was finally abandoned. Due to the earthquake, many of
the underground chambers of the complex are no longer reachable.
Daqin was "rediscovered" in 1998[1]
and its roots in early Chinese Christianity were recognized.
The pagoda
today
Inside the pagoda, artistic works in both Western and Asiatic
style can still be found, among them Jonah at the walls of Nineveh, a nativity scene and Syriac
graffiti. Many of these artworks are made from mud and plaster,
which suffered during prior centuries from exposure to the
elements. Seismic activity and flooding endanger the stability of
the pagoda. In 1999, the pagoda's exterior was restored, but
overall stability was not improved. Further restoration of the site
is planned, as well as exploration, most probably by remote probe,
of the collapsed underground chambers.[4]
The exterior of the pagoda and its surroundings were featured in
episode one of the 2009 BBC program "A History of Christianity"[5], the
program also features an interview with Martin Palmer by the presenter Professor
Diarmaid
MacCulloch.
See also
References
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