Yue Fei Temple
岳王庙
The shrine and tomb of Yue Fei, the Southern Song general who resisted the Jin, with a plaque reading 'Return Our Rivers' and iron kneeling figures of Qin Hui and his wife, scenes familiar from history textbooks.
The Yue Fei Temple sits at the foot of Qixia Hill on the north shore of West Lake. It was first built in the 14th year of the Jiading era of the Southern Song, which is 1221, and has two parts: the Loyal Shrine and the tomb of Yue Fei. The main hall houses a painted sculpture of Yue Fei seated, with a large plaque reading 'Return Our Rivers' hanging above. In the tomb grounds, in front of the graves of Yue Fei and his son Yue Yun, are cast-iron kneeling figures of Qin Hui, his wife Lady Wang and two others, with their hands tied behind their backs. The couplet 'Green mountains are fortunate to bury loyal bones; white iron is innocent in casting treacherous ministers' is widely known. Admission is about 25 yuan, and a visit takes about one hour. Just outside are the Quyuan Fenghe garden and the northern end of Su Causeway.
Opening hours
About 07:30–17:30
Nearby sights
- Impression West Lake Show
- Quyuan Fenghe (Breeze-ruffled Lotus)
- Hangzhou Botanical Garden
- Gushan Hill & Xiling Seal Engravers' Society
- Guo's Villa
- Zhejiang Provincial Museum
- Su Causeway
- Pinghu Qiuyue (Autumn Moon over Calm Lake)