Sanyuan City God Temple (Chinese: 三原城隍廟) is located in Sanyuan (三原) County of Xianyang (咸陽) City, Shaanxi (陝西) Province, China. The temple is deemed to be the most well preserved City God Temple in Shaanxi Province.
Built in 1375 during the Ming (明) Dynasty, Sanyuan City God Temple is one of the most complete examples of its kind dating from the Ming and Qing (清) Dynasties (1368-1911).
With an area of 13,390 square meters, the main buildings were erected on a traditional north-south axis and the secondary buildings are equally distributed on the east and west sides of this axis. Such symmetrical arrangement is a perfect example of traditional Ming Dynasty architecture.
Constructed in 1757, Lingxing Gate is actually a two-storey tower with a height of 13 meters. The north side of the second floor serves as a stage. It was here that many Chinese traditional operas were performed.
The central courtyard is the essence of Sanyuan City God Temple, in the center of the courtyard stands the Main Palace (獻殿), which houses the statue of the City God.
A Bell Tower (鐘樓) and a drum tower (鼓樓) stand symmetrically on the east and west sides of the central courtyard. Both are 17.5 meters tall and each has 12 pillars in order to bear the weight of their roofs.
In the center of the courtyard stands a spectacular archway, which is the biggest in the whole temple. The top of this archway is engraved with 58 images of little boys who are praying to the City God.
