The three pagodas in Dali

There was much more than just three pagodas.  Look at this map:

I walked a lot of it.  I heard it was massive but this was more than I was expecting.  The grounds are filled with temples and lots of Buddhas inside the temples.

The pagodas are made of brick and covered in white mud.  The big one was built during 823-840 AD.  The smaller ones were built 100 years later.  The designer was said to come from Xi'an.  There is a pagoda here that was built 100 years before these and is of a similar design.