Xiajie Mosque in Yangbi County, Dali

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Xiajie Mosque (下街清真寺) is located in the southeast of Xiajie Village (下街村), Cangshanxi Town (苍山西镇), Yangbi County (漾濞县), Yunnan Province. It stands beside the roadside, about 1,000 meters from the county center. To the north lies the old road leading into the town, to the south it faces the Yangbi River (漾濞江) and Feifeng Mountain (飞凤山), and to the southeast it looks across the river toward Hexi Village (河西村). The mosque is nestled among local residences on both its eastern and western sides.

Historical Background

According to historical sources, Xiajie Mosque was originally built during the Ming Dynasty. After the failure of Du Wenxiu’s (杜文秀) anti-Qing uprising in the Qing Dynasty’s Xianfeng period, the mosque was once repurposed as a Confucian temple by the Qing government. In the 1950s, it successively served as a school, a textile workshop, and later a warehouse for the County Grain Bureau.

Architectural Features

Originally, the mosque complex included a main prayer hall, side halls, a screen wall, a “call to prayer tower”, a central gate, a marble arch bridge, a stone archway, and gardens. However, most of these structures were destroyed in the 1950s, leaving only the main hall and side halls. Restoration efforts began in June 2007 with the renovation of the north and south side halls and the reconstruction of the entrance gate and screen wall. Between January and May 2015, the main hall underwent emergency roof repairs.

The main prayer hall, the core of the complex, faces east and features a double-eaved hip roof with traditional timber frame architecture. It reflects the majestic and elegant Ming and Qing architectural style, demonstrating high craftsmanship and significant historical and academic value. The mosque remains a vital center for religious and cultural activities among the Hui community in Xiajie Village.

Cultural Significance and Protection

In March 1988, Xiajie Mosque was designated as one of the first batch of county-level protected cultural heritage sites by the People’s Government of Yangbi Yi Autonomous County (漾濞彝族自治县). In August 2003, it was included in the second batch of prefecture-level protected cultural heritage sites by the People’s Government of Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture (大理白族自治州).

Protection Scope

The protected area is demarcated as follows:

• East: up to the perimeter wall
• South: up to the base line behind the side halls
• West: 10 meters beyond the back wall of the main hall
• North: up to the base line behind the side halls

The permanent religious boundary markers define the limits of the religious site.
The construction control zone extends:

• West: 10 meters beyond the protected area
• South: up to the property boundary of the mosque
• East and North: consistent with the protection area boundaries.