Inscribed on the second storey are the words "the fifteenth day of the eighth month in the sixth year of the Jiayou period of the Song Dynasty," which is reliable proof that the pagoda was constructed in 1061. Cast on the pagoda are also the pagoda's name, Sarira Stupa for Relic Tooth, and its weight, 76,600 jin (38,300 kilogrammes).

The octagonal, thirteen-storey pagoda, modelled after wooden multistoreyed pagodas, is 17.9 meters high. It looks elegant and graceful and is one of the best-preserved iron pagodas in China.

The pagoda was cast storey by storey. All the sections were buckled together and no welding was involved. The base of the pagoda is formed by a two-tier Sumeru pedestal. The eastern, southern, western and northern sides of the first storey have lotus-petal-shaped doors used as niches for Buddhist statues, while the other sides are engraved with images of Buddha, bodhisattvas and other ornamental designs. The brackets under the pent roofs all show good workmanship and the pent roofs are wide, in the style of wooden buildings in the Song