Chi Dong Pagoda

The pagoda was founded in the Later Le period under the 14th year of the Chinh Hoa era (1693), with a layout including a two-story, eight-roofed three-entrance gate, the main pagoda, the Patriarch's house, and left and right corridors. Through the changes of time, Chi Dong Pagoda still preserves a fairly imposing and solid main pagoda and Patriarch's house. The main pagoda consists of a nine-bay Front Hall connected to a five-bay Upper Hall in a ding-character layout, creating a balanced and harmonious worship space. The roof is designed in the stacked-eave style with three tiers and eight roofs; the two gable roofs are made smaller and higher than the Front Hall roof to form a bell tower and drum tower, enhancing the majesty of the entire structure.

The Patriarch's House is located on the left side of the pagoda, consisting of seven bays in a pestle-handle shape, built in the chong bon, ke truyen style, with a sturdy system of columns and beams, demonstrating skilled traditional woodworking techniques. The wooden components in the pagoda are all made of precious wood, treated and assembled using standard mortise-and-tenon techniques, helping ensure the long-term durability of the architecture.

The carving art at Chi Dong Pagoda is especially rich and exquisite. On the beams, brackets, tie beams, and purlin supports are carved diverse decorative motifs such as flowers and leaves, scroll patterns, seal characters, along with sacred creatures such as the phoenix, ly, dragon, and horse. Many works remaining today are products of talented folk artisans, demonstrating a high level of artistry, typical examples being the corner brackets in the Front Hall and the panel carvings on both sides of the Upper Hall depicting themes of dragon-ly-turtle-phoenix, plum-bird, pine-deer, vividly and with vitality. These panel carvings are considered outstanding works of folk woodcarving art, carrying special aesthetic and historical value.

Chi Dong Pagoda currently preserves a system of statues of high artistic value, including 13 statues made mainly of wood and fired clay, strongly imbued with traditional sculptural style. In the Front Hall, four statues are arranged from left to right: the statue of Duc Ong, the pair of Dharma Protectors Khuyen Thien and Trung Ac, and the statue of the Holy Monk. Up in the Upper Hall are six statues arranged in dignified tiers, including the Amitabha Trinity, the Quan Am Nam Hai statue, the Jade Emperor statue, and the statue of Shakyamuni riding a dragon. Each statue is elaborately shaped, with soft lines, and the clothing and facial features vividly express the solemn demeanor of the deities, contributing to the sacred atmosphere of the ancient pagoda.

Chi Dong Pagoda was ranked as a national relic by the Ministry of Culture and Information in 1993.