Attration Category
Nanjing Weather
Originally built in 1416, the Jinghai Temple was commissioned by the Yongle emperor in honor of Admiral Zheng He. Dedicated to Tianfei (known as Tin Hau further south), who watches over seafarers, the temple was once Nanjing's largest and most magnificent. The temple was the 1842 location of the signing of the Treaty of Nanjing, one of the "Unequal Treaties" that ended the first opium war. A small museum sits within the temple grounds outlining the treaty and history around the opium wars. Another hall within the temple outlines the seven voyages of Zheng He on his travels to Africa, Southeast Asia and Arabia. The original buildings from the 1416 structure no longer exist (the current temple was built in 1987), however a stele on the back of a turtle in the courtyard dates from the temple founding and contains the handwriting of the Yongle emperor.