Constructed in the Song Dynasty, the brick Tiger Hill Pagoda was constructed to replace and imitate in its design, a previous wooden Tang Dynasty structure. It is a valuable resource for information regarding Chinese wooden pagoda design.

Built 3 kilometres northwest of Suzhou, as part of the Yunyan Temple established at the summit of Tiger Hill Pagoda is the oldest of such structures in the area. It is octagonal in plan and consists of seven storeys that reach to a height of 48 metres. What is of particular interest is the fact that the 600-ton pagoda has been tilting for more than 400 years and today leans to the northwest 2.5 metres off centre.

The extent of the decoration demonstrates the increasing ornamentation of Chinese Buddhist pagodas, but the plainer structure of today has lost none of its charm. Indeed, the entire pagoda, in its aged state, has become an intrinsic pat of the hill upon which it stands and serves as an icon for the ancient city of Suzhou.