Standing on Baoshi (Precious Stone) Hill on the north bank of West Lake in Hangzhou, Baochu Pagoda was originally called Yingshang Pagoda and was constructed between 968 and 975 during the Northern Song Dynasty. Legend has it that after founding the Northern Song Dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin, the new emperor, called the king of Wuyue, Qian Hongchu, to the capital at Kaifeng. Qian Hongchu’s uncle, Wu Yanshuang, prayed for his safe return and had this pagoda constructed, naming it Baochu Pagoda-Tower of Blessing Chu. The pagoda was reconstructed between 998 and 1003. In 1789, during the Qing Dynasty, a broken stone tablet with an inscribed account of the construction of the pagoda by Wu Yanshuang was discovered at the foot of the pagoda. Since then the pagoda has repeatedly been destroyed and restored. The present building was the result of a reconstruction in 1933.
The pagoda was a mixed structure of brick and wood, but all the wooden parts have been destroyed, leaving only the main body, built of brick. The present pagoda is a hexagonal structure of seven storeys, about thirty meters high. Standing on Baoshi Hill, Baochu Pagoda is a landmark and one of the important tourist attractions of beautiful West Lake.
