I went to Shanxi, and I seriously suspect the ancients really saw dragons!

/
After visiting the Jinci Temple, I seriously suspect the people of Shanxi have seen real dragons!
.
Eight Song Dynasty wood-carved dragons in front of the Saint Mother Hall that are masters of "expression management"!
They are the oldest existing wood-carved coiled dragon pillars in China.
Born in the second year of the Yuan You reign of the Northern Song Dynasty.
60 years earlier than the "Along the River During the Qingming Festival" painting!
.
Each dragon has its own unique expression.
The attention-seeking dragon with its head tilted and tongue sticking out.
The peace sign ✌🏻 dragon, the thumbs-up 👍🏻 dragon, the international gesture 🖕🏻 dragon, etc.
/
📸Mystical photo spots:
1️⃣ 45° oblique angle of the Saint Mother Hall (King's perspective with dragon pillars + flying eaves in the same frame)
2️⃣ Squat down and shoot upwards at the dragon's head (to capture the oppressive feeling of the giant dragon's gaze)
3️⃣ Shoot against the light at 3pm (the dragon's body will automatically have a gilded special effect)
.
The wood carving has a 3D effect! The dragon's whiskers are distinct, the scales have their own light and shadow effects, and on a sunny day, the dragon's claws will cast a "real dragon manifestation" projection on the ground!
/
✅One-day itinerary:
Jinci Museum Gate → Jinren Platform (to see the Northern Song Dynasty iron men) → Offering Hall (a building miraculously built without nails) → Fish Marsh and Flying Bridge (the ancient version of an overpass) → Saint Mother Hall (find the eight dragons in the center) → Nanlao Spring (get a pot of thousand-year-old koi water)
.
🔥Three must-see treasures:
❶ 43 painted statues of maidservants from the Song Dynasty in the Saint Mother Hall (with real human hair + masters of micro-expression management)
❷ Emperor Taizong's handwritten "Jinci Inscription" stele (a large-scale praise scene by Li Shimin)
❸ Zhou Cypress (a 3,000-year-old tree spirit)
.
‼️Personal tips:
Try speaking your dialect to the dragon pillars! Local elders say the dragon's ears are hollow, and whispers can be transmitted into the Dragon Palace.