beijing's central axis: an important symbol that reflects the outstanding characteristics of chinese civilization
2024-08-30
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as the core of the capital of china during the yuan, ming, qing and modern times, the planning, construction and improvement of beijing's central axis reflect the pursuit and shaping of the ideal order of the country, city and life by chinese civilization, and is an important symbol of the outstanding characteristics of chinese civilization. compared with the capital axes of asian countries such as japan, south korea and vietnam, beijing's central axis presents the distinctive characteristics of large scale, complete preservation, and significant leading role in urban planning and layout, which continues to this day; compared with the political center city axes of other regions in the world such as washington, usa, paris, france, and rome, italy, beijing's central axis carries the traditional chinese capital planning concepts, ritual culture and philosophical thoughts, has a unique axis composition and landscape morphological characteristics, represents a unique type in the history of world cities, and makes important contributions to the history of world urban planning.
a powerful testimony to the cultural traditions of "zhong" and "he" in chinese civilization.the doctrine of the mean says: "the center is the foundation of the world; harmony is the way to achieve the world. when the center and harmony are achieved, heaven and earth are in their proper places, and all things are nurtured." "zhong" means impartiality, neither too much nor too little, and "he" means balance, order, harmony and stability. the concepts of "zhong" and "he" are implemented in the aspects of urban site selection, urban planning and architectural design, that is, they are manifested in the pursuit of a layout that respects the center and is balanced and symmetrical. "lüshi chunqiu" says: "the ancient kings chose the center of the world to establish their country, chose the center of the country to establish their palace, and chose the center of the palace to establish their temple." ancient chinese classics closely linked the "center" location of the capital site selection with the harmony of heaven, earth and all things, and the stability of the country and society. as the core building complex of the capital, the central axis of beijing symbolizes and strengthens the importance of the state power and the importance of ritual order through the selection of the center and symmetrical layout. at the same time, ancient chinese cities and buildings have a north-facing and south-facing orientation. "the book of changes" says, "the sage faces south to listen to the world and governs towards the light." the emphasis on the concept of "selecting the center" and the orientation of facing north and south jointly construct the planning pattern of the central axis of china's capital. the buildings that are evenly and symmetrically distributed on and on both sides of the central axis of beijing show the consistent planning concept and order concept from regional site selection to architectural design, reflecting china's pursuit of social harmony and stability through urban construction since ancient times. tiananmen square and the building complex are arranged in the center with national memorial buildings. the national museum of china on the east side and the great hall of the people on the west side correspond to the temple of heaven and the altar of land and grain, respectively. they adhere to the concepts of "center" and "harmony" in chinese civilization, continue the cultural tradition of "left ancestors and right community", express china's long-term respect for people and real society, and provide important support for the contemporary integrity of the outstanding value of the central axis of beijing.
the central axis of beijing connects the grand and solemn national ceremonial sites with the bustling and lively streets, forming a landscape rhythm and magnificent order with ups and downs, and balanced symmetry from left to right. it is a model of the development of the central axis of traditional chinese capitals to a mature stage. the picture shows a bird's-eye view of the central axis of beijing (partial). photo courtesy of the beijing central axis world heritage protection office
a material testimony to china's unique architectural aesthetics and taste.the planning pattern of beijing's central axis reflects the ideal capital city paradigm in "kaogongji", showing a magnificent and orderly overall spatial form. in the harmonious and unified order, there are contrasts and changes, creating a spatial experience rich in rhythmic changes and the integration of rituals and music. the sections of beijing's central axis contain strict proportional relationships. the inner city section runs from the bell tower to the north gate of jingshan, from the north gate of jingshan to the meridian gate of the forbidden city, and from the meridian gate to the arrow tower of zhengyang gate. the three sections have the same distance, which is approximately equal to the depth of the forbidden city and jingshan, that is, the palace city and the imperial garden. tiananmen square also continued the traditional pattern and scale in its planning and design. these proportional relationships constitute the inherent connection between the scale of beijing's central axis and the palace city building complex, shape the rhythmic rhythm between the paragraph nodes, and form an organic and unified relationship between the various parts of beijing's central axis and the overall scale, integrating the historical and modern urban space. the architectural forms on and on both sides of the central axis of beijing follow strict hierarchy and institutionality. according to the differences in location, function, and users, a systematic design language is adopted in the building base, body, roof, material, color, decoration and other aspects, which contains the hierarchical differences in the internal order and forms a unified whole. among the ancient royal palace buildings on the central axis of beijing, the hall of supreme harmony in the forbidden city, located on a three-story white marble sumeru pedestal, is a yellow glazed tile double-eaved hip roof building with the highest level of form and is one of the most important ceremonial spaces in the palace. among the ancient urban management facilities, tiananmen was the main gate of the imperial city in the ming and qing dynasties. it has ceremonial symbolic significance and uses the highest level of city gate architectural form, which is a double-eaved hip roof building. the bell tower and drum tower are both located on a tall city platform. they use black glazed tiles with green trimmings and gray barrel tiles with green trimmings, respectively, showing obvious differences from royal buildings. the four groups of sacrificial buildings on both sides of the central axis of beijing are symmetrical in planning pattern, and because of their different meanings, functions and importance, the architectural forms contain many changes in similarity. in ancient chinese tradition, ancestors were worshipped in temples and natural spirits were worshipped on high platforms. to highlight the importance of worshipping ancestors, the temple of heaven was built in a similar size and material to the hall of supreme harmony in the forbidden city, and was the highest form of official architecture in the ming and qing dynasties. the altar of land and grain, the circular mound altar of the temple of heaven, and the altar of agriculture, which were altars for worshipping natural spirits, were all open high platforms. among them, the circular mound altar of the temple of heaven is the largest altar, with a round shape symbolizing the "sky" in the "round sky and square earth". the altar of land and grain is a square altar, and the five-colored soil laid on the altar was paid as tribute from all over the country to symbolize the country, and the five colors of the soil symbolize the "five elements" as the basis of all things. the beijing central axis building complex creates different spatial experiences in different sections with its unique planning pattern, architectural form, scale and color design and changes, and constructs a multi-level and distinctive urban landscape from north to south, showing a magnificent and orderly overall spatial form, and through the traditional color image of "red, gold, green, gray courtyard and plain city", it creates a unique chinese aesthetic interest. tiananmen square and its building complex inherit ancient chinese architectural practices and national style, and absorb a variety of architectural styles including ancient roman architecture. it is a fusion of chinese and western architectural civilizations.
a special testimony to the national ceremonial tradition that continues to this day.since ancient times, ritual and sacrificial activities have played a vital role in chinese social life. zuo zhuan said: "ritual governs the country, determines the state, and orders the people, which is beneficial to the successors." the central axis of beijing highlights the emphasis on ritual order in the planning and construction of traditional chinese capitals, and is connected with the multi-functional space needed for the daily life of the people, showing the rich and diverse cultural traditions of the old city of beijing. the palace buildings on the central axis of beijing and the sacrificial buildings on both sides are planned and constructed around the ritual system. the forbidden city is not only the place where the emperors of the ming and qing dynasties lived and held court, but also the place where the highest level of ceremonies such as the emperor's enthronement were held, and the starting point of sacrificial activities outside the royal palace, thus forming a ritual space composed of the palace city, the imperial garden and the sacrificial buildings connected by the central road. during the ming and qing dynasties, sacrificial activities had to respond to the four seasons of the year or major national events. the route of the sacrificial ceremony, the direction of the ceremony, the time of the process, and the people participating in the ceremony were all strictly regulated. important sacrifices were generally attended by the emperor himself, starting from the hall of supreme harmony, heading south out of the meridian gate, and marching along the central road on the central axis of beijing. after the founding of the people's republic of china, tiananmen square and its buildings served as public spaces for holding national ceremonial activities, continuing the national ceremonial traditions carried by the central axis in history. the beijing central axis also assumes the function of urban management that is closely related to the lives of the people. in the ming and qing dynasties, the bell and drum tower used drums and bells to tell the time for the city, managing the daily operation order of traditional social life. tiananmen, zhengyangmen and yongdingmen, as the main gates of the imperial city, inner city and outer city of beijing in the ming and qing dynasties, are important nodes in the urban management system. the bells and drums are used as commands to open and close the city gates on time and regulate the daily life of residents. with the changes of the times, the bell and drum tower and the city gate buildings on the beijing central axis have been opened to the public. climbing up, you can overlook the neat and orderly urban landscape and city skyline of the beijing central axis.
after more than seven centuries of accumulation and improvement, beijing's central axis has absorbed the planning and design concepts and practical achievements of previous capital cities, continued the ancient historical tradition of using the central axis as the baseline for capital city planning and design, and added new content and given new connotations according to the changes in beijing's natural geographical environment and humanistic and social environment, demonstrating the outstanding continuity and innovation of chinese civilization. beijing's central axis has experienced three dynasties established by different ethnic groups, namely the yuan, ming and qing dynasties, and has been continuously inherited and developed. it has witnessed the coexistence of confucianism, buddhism, taoism and various natural god beliefs related to agriculture, and has been permeated with the value pursuit of peace, harmony and harmony. it is a concentrated embodiment of the outstanding unity, inclusiveness and peace of chinese civilization. the successful application of beijing's central axis for world heritage status has shown the world a comprehensive and authentic ancient and modern china, allowing the achievements of the chinese nation's modern civilization construction and the strong vitality of china's excellent traditional culture to be widely recognized by the world, becoming a deep nourishment for strengthening the construction of socialist spiritual civilization, and enhancing the spiritual power to comprehensively promote the construction of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation with chinese-style modernization.
for more exciting content, please see the article "beijing central axis: a masterpiece of china's ideal capital order" published by the national cultural heritage administration in the 16th issue of "qiushi" in 2024
(planning: xu huaqing)
