鹽水老街古廟 - 護庇宮

媽祖廟(護庇宮) 【400年以上歷史】
Hubi Temple

地址：Google地圖位置
主祀神明: 天上聖母
創立起始年: 1623(明天啟3年)(明永曆末年)

護庇宮又名鹽水媽祖宮，根據廟志之記載，其建廟時間可遠溯自明天啟3年(1623)，鹽水當地糖郊「崇興行」從大陸福建湄州朝天閣迎來一尊媽祖(即今所奉祀的開基三媽，又稱糖郊媽)，併入福德祠合祀，並改為媽祖祠。

臺灣神奇: 鹽水護庇宮天上聖母(郭玟成)

而據《諸羅縣志》卷十二〈雜記志〉之記載：「天妃廟：一在城南縣署之左．康熙五十六年，知縣周鍾瑄鳩眾建…一在鹹水港街．五十五年，居民合建．」

而據〈重興護庇宮碑記〉中所記：「月港之置天后宮也，于茲有年矣。康熙丙申歲，始擇其地，坐北向南，重興天后宮以成，且匾其額日『護庇宮』」

Hubi Temple (護庇宮), located on Zhongzheng Road (中正路) in Yanshui district (鹽水區), is one of Taiwan’s earliest Matsu temples, and it traces its origins back to 1623. With almost 400 years of history, the temple dates to a time when merchant vessels would pass through Yuejin Harbor (月津港), and it was a place where the citizens of Yanshui town would seek blessings. At that time a whole variety of trades and occupations flourished at the harbor edge, and Hubi Temple was an eternal partner during the development of Yanshui. Within the temple, the Door God (門神) was painted by nationally-renowned painter Pan Li-shui(潘麗水), and it is both vivid and lifelike, regardless of which angle it is observed from. Pan painted the dazzling paintings within this space whilst he was still relatively young; and as an example, the beard of the Door God has been painted with a meticulous technique that individually delineates every single hair. In front of the main temple, Qianliyan (Thousandmile Eyes) and Shunfeng’er (Favourablewind Ear) sit as guardians of Matsu, and both statues have been in place since 1716. The three hundred years of history embodied by the pair are reflective of the treasure trove of cultural relics and old stories of Yanshui encapsulated within this space.
Source:Tourism Bureau of Tainan City Government.

月港護庇宮活動

永曆16年(1662)鄭成功部將何積善率眾入墾，並將隨軍的媽祖入祠合祀，即今日的鎮殿大媽，後來鹽水境內日益繁榮，對媽祖之信仰尤甚，當時郊商又陸續自大陸迎來雜貨所奉之「箃郊媽」、由布商所奉之「布郊媽」及水、油商所奉之「水、(油)郊媽」等媽祖，另外由義竹鄉角帶圍商人迎來之「洲仔尾二媽」，同入媽祖祠合祀。至康熙55年(1716)，境內信眾改建並定名為護庇宮。

古神像