The Zhenguo Pagoda, one of the paired pagodas in Quanzhou [Photo/VCG]

The Zhenguo and Renshou pagodas both have five stories and an octagonal plan. With heights of 48 meters and 45 meters respectively, they now share similar structures and designs except for arched brackets and some partial decorations. They were both built with pagoda core pillars, Sumeru terraces, stairs in the inside corridors and handrails on each floor. There are 80 Buddhist relief carvings decorating the exterior walls of the pagodas.

The Zhenguo Pagoda was originally built as a wooden one with five stories in the Tang Dynasty (618-907). After several refurbishments, it was reconstructed to a stone pagoda in 1250. Likewise, the Renshou Pagoda was also originally constructed in wood and rebuilt into a stone one in 1238 after a number of alterations.