Chinese Architecture
in
Beijing
Forms and designs
Chinese architectureof The
Ming dynasty uses bright colors,
painting detailed scenes, roof
tiles, roof guardians, and many
marble fence posts. It looks very
different than western
architecture. Power is shown by
space not height.
In China, the Forbidden City was
considered to be the center of the world.
The Emperor was to be at the center of the
cosmos,so the main axis of the city is NorthSouth. The Hall of Supreme Harmony at the
center of the city is where the Emperor held
audiences.After entering the city you passed
through several halls and courtyards on your
way to this audience. It was meant to make
you feel small.
Arial view of Forbidden City
From this view of the Forbidden City you
can see the North-South axis and the way
that Feng Shui was used to design it. It must
have a mountain at the back so they built an
artificial one called Coal Hill. It was
surrounded by a moat which was the
necessary water feature for an auspicious
location. It is in concentric circles within a
square which represents heaven and earth.
Forbidden City
Each gate is narrow which contrasts with the
large squares surrounding all gates.
Together the depth and width of the space
creates a sense of mystery and a regal
attitude.
The dragon represents the
Emperor while the phoenix
represents the Empress.
Summer Palace, Beijing
The Forbidden City was designed to be
both beautiful and impressive. Its
golden yellow roof tiles made it stand
out from all other buildings in the
area.Although it covers huge areas, it
maintains harmony because of how it
was designed.
Nine is a lucky number in China. Notice the
number of nails in each door.
Nine is a lucky number in China so the
Emperor will have 9 roof guardians The
color of a roof reflects the social status of
the people living inside. Yellow was
reserved only for the Imperial family.Princes
can only use green while ordinary people
use grey roof tiles. Any Imperial door will
have 9 studs in each direction.
Summer Palace
• Golden Roof Tiles
for an Imperial
Residence.
Who lived in this house ? How could
you tell ?
Roof Guardians
The dragon is associated with the Emperor
and is used extensively in the Forbidden City
as a decorative element. These dragons serve
as downspouts to move water away from the
hall to protect it. They are the embodiment of
imperial power but also serve a practical
purpose.
Emperor’s Dragon Way
Hall of Supreme Harmony
Inside the Hall of Supreme Harmony there
are 66 great columns. The throne has
dragon decorations as does the screen
behind it. The cross beams have dragons in
yellow decorating them. The Emperor’s
cloak had dragons woven into it. Altogether
there are 12,654 dragons in this room. A
multiple of the auspicious number 9.
Large pots are for Fire prevention
All buildings must have water in front of
them and mountains at the back pointing to
the sun. In this case the water also served
the practical feature of protecting wooden
structures in case of fire.The large pots are
found all over the Forbidden City.
Roof Guardians with light
bulbs
A marble railing
Private Gardens of the
Emperor
Temple of Heaven
The Temple of Heaven is where the
Emperor made sacrifices to assure bountiful
harvests . China was an agricultural society
so the importance of this sacrifice was
shown by the emperor himself offering it up
to the heavens.The hall itself is high and is a
symbol for the heavens. All carvings inside
are of clouds.
Lamma Temple was built by the Ming
Emperor’s as a home away from home
for the Dalai Lama of Tibetan
Buddhism. When he visited Beijing, he
lived here.
Lamma Temple ,Beijing
A gate to Ming Tombs
The Badaling section of the Great Wall is
one of the more easily reached from Beijing
but its also very steep. It crosses a critical
pass that protects Beijing. The guard towers
used dried wolf dung to burn to announce
invaders were coming. The amount they
burned told how many soldiers were coming
through the pass. This gate is an entrance to
the wall itself.
Badaling section of
Great Wall
Interior Painting detail
Interior painting in a
temple at the Great
Wall
Prince Gong was an imperial official
who was executed for his “
extravagance “ . His real crime was in
building a stone boat which angered
the Emperor and led to his execution.
The former palace at Beijing University
shows his taste but this was his palace.
Today it is a teahouse.
Prince Gong’s
Mansion
Drum Tower
Beijing
University
A female lion
with her paw
on her baby .
The Empress Cixi’s’
Stone Boat