TRADITIONAL ARCHITECTURE IN CHINA

 

Temple of Heaven in BeijingTraditional Chinese buildings and structures include pavilions, high-

arched stone bridges, and multi-storied pagodas. Some Chinese architecture seem intent on

overpowering nature with symmetry and concentric rectangles.

Good Websites and Sources: Wikipedia article Wikipedia   ; Asian Historical

Architectureorientalarchitecture.com ; Oriental Style /www.ourorient.com ; Articles on Chinese

Architecture china-window.com   ; More Articles on Chinese Architecturechinaetravel.com   ;

Chinatown Connection chinatownconnection.com ; China Vista Articles on

Architecturechinavista.com   ; Asian Historical Architecture orientalarchitecture.com   ; Home

Architecture Book: Houses of China by Bonne Shemie ; Yin Yu Tang pem.org ; House

Architecure washington.edu ; House Interiors washington.edu : Link in this Website:HOMES IN

CHINA  Factsanddetails.com/China   ; Mao-Era Architecture See Wikipedia article on Mao

Mausoleum Wikipedia   ; Oriental Architecture

Forbidden City: Book:Forbidden City by Frances Wood, a British Sinologist. Web

SitesWikipedia ; Virtual Forbidden City   ; China Vista   ; UNESCO World Heritage Site Sites (click

1001wonders.org at the bottom): UNESCO World Heritage Site Map   UNESCO World Heritage

Site Web site (click the site you want) World Heritage Site   ; Maps China Map Guide   Link in this

Website: FORBIDDEN CITY factsanddetails.com/china ; Temple of

Heaven: Wikipedia   UNESCO World Heritage Site (click 1001wonders.org at the

bottom):UNESCO World Heritage Site Map Also try the UNESCO World Heritage Site Web site

(click the site you want) World Heritage Site   ; Map on China Map Guide China Map Guide   ; Link

in this Website: Temple of Heaven Factsanddetails.com/China

Chinese Architectural Features

Important buildings have traditionally been built on a platform or terrace of pounded earth

covered by brick or stone. The terraces are reached by a dozen or more steps and are adorned

with stone balustrades and sculptures.

Traditional Chinese buildings have tile roofs with swooping eaves. Walls are usually made of

brick or wood. The tile roofs are gray for ordinary buildings, yellow for imperial palaces and blue

or green for other important structures. The upturned eaves are elaborately carved with

extraordinary detail and are works of art in their own right. Sometimes bells hang from the eaves.

Traditional arch gate features include carved flowering trees, peacocks and lucky bats. Painted

red and gold, they are placed at city gates and in stores and restaurants. Not merely decorative,

they were strategically placed to ward off evil spirits. The carvings, spirals and swirls are meant

to confuse them further.

Some Chinese buildings feature balconies covered with elaborate iron and woodwork. They are

often painted bright red, gold and green, colors associated with good luck, and hung with signs,

tasseled lanterns, and silk banners.

The entrance to palace often had a large water tower. Palaces of the Machu emperors at

Chengte featured exposed unadorned cedarwood beams which gave of a fragrant scent that is

also a natural insect repellant.

Feng Shui and Homes

   

A hall in the Forbidden CityMany buildings are laid out with the principals of feng shui in mind.Feng

shui is the practice of bringing about good fortune among the living, the dead and the spiritual

world by making sure objects placed in a landscape or space are in harmony with the universe in

such a way that they optimally draw on sources of qi (cosmic energy or life force). Also known as

geomancy, ifeng shui is often expressed in terms of Chinese and Taoist cosmology and is said to

be over 3,500 years old.

 The five directions of Chinese cosmology and feng shui are north, south, east, west and center.

South represents light and brings good luck. North represents darkness and brings bad luck.

Accordingly, doors of houses should not face north of northwest: they should face south. The

entire house should be oriented towards the south with mountains to the north to block the bad

luck from entering and keep good luck from escaping. The best location is at the foot of a

mountain, facing a river. Waters helps attract qi. Buildings with a square plan help hold it firmly.

 The location of the family alter, the orientation of the house and the arrangement of the furniture

should be in harmony. Bedrooms should face the sun and stairway should't be visible from the

front entrance. Qi is believed to enter through the front door and exit through the toilet.

 Walls can be constructed at certain angles to attract positive energy. Doors can be adorned with

coins bearing the names of famous emperors to attract good luck. Fountains in corners are

sometimes used to deflect bad energy from the sharp angles of nearby buildings. Mirrors are

also used to deflect bad energy. Cell phones are believed to disrupt feng shui. Thriving plants are

signs that qi is plentiful.

Feng Shui, Buildings and Cities

 Entire cities have been laid out

according to feng shui principals. In the old days many buildings in Beijing were oriented with the

feng shui in mind, namely with their backs towards the north and the mountains and the their

fronts facing towards water and the south.

 Ideally, feng shui masters are consulted before building are built and designs are drawn up. It is

not unheard of for recently constructed buildings to be torn down, or for people to refuse to

occupy them, because they are out of harmony or face the wrong direction. Sometimes the

buildings can be saved if certain countermeasures are taken, such as locating mirrors at key

areas. Other times people are undeterred and move in anyway.

Chinese Temple Architecture

 Chinese temples—whether they be Taoist, Buddhist or Confucian—have a similar lay out, with

features found in traditional Chinese courtyard houses and elements intended to confuse or repel

evil spirits. Temples are usually surrounded by a wall and face south in accordance with feng

shui principals. The gates usually contain paintings, reliefs or statues of warrior deities intended

to keep evil spirits away. Through the gates is a large courtyard, which is often protected by a

spirit wall, a another layer of protection intended to keep evil spirits at bay. The halls of the

temple are arranged around the courtyard with the least important being near the entrance in

case evil spirits do get in.

 Chinese temples are often comprised of many buildings, halls and shrines. They tend to be

situated in the middle of towns and have north-south axises. Large halls, shrines and important

temple buildings have traditionally been dominated by tiled roofs, which are usually green or

yellow and sit atop eaves decorated with religious figures and good luck symbols. The roofs are

often supported on magnificently carved and decorated beams, which in turn are supported by

intricately carved stone dragon pillars. Many temples are entered through the left door and exited

through the right.

 Pagodas are towers generally found in conjunction with temples or viewed as temples

themselves. Some can be entered; others can not. The Chinese have traditionally believed that

the heavens were round and the earth was square. This concept is reflected in the fact that

pagodas have square bases rooted to the earth but have a circular or octagonal plans so they

look round when viewed by the gods above in the sky.

 Early Chinese-style pagodas were modeled after Indian stupas. Pagoda architecture arrived with

Buddhism but over the centuries developed a distinctly Chinese characteristics that influenced

the architecture in Japan and Korea and other places.

Chinese Temple Features

 

Temple under construction Many temples have courtyards. Often, in the middle of the courtyard is a

small bowl where incense and paper money are burnt. Offerings of fruit and flowers are left in a

main hall at the intricately-carved altars, often decorated with red brocade embroidery with gilded

characters.

 Traditional Chinese temples contain wall paintings, carved tile walls and shrines to gods and

ancestors that in turn are wonderfully decorated with wood carvings, murals, ceramic figures and

plaster moldings with motifs that the Chinese regard as auspicious.

 On the outside of temples there are often stone walls with simple carvings; gates with statues of

fanged, bug-eyed goblins, intended to keep evil spirits away; and monuments of children who

displayed filial piety to their parents and virgins who lost their fiances before marriage but

remained pure their entire life.

 Wealthy Chinese temples often contain gongs, bells, drums, side altars, adjoining rooms,

accommodation for the temple keepers, chapels for praying and shrines devoted to certain

deities. There is generally no set time for praying or making offerings—people visit whenever

they feel like it—and the only communal services are funerals.

 At Chinese temples orange and red signifies happiness and joy; white represents purity and

death; green symbolizes harmony; yellow and gold represents heaven; and grey and black

symbolize death and misfortune. Swastikas are often seen on Chinese temples. The Chinese

word for swastika (wan) is a homonym of the word for "ten thousand," and is often used in the

lucky phrase "chi-hsiang wan-fu chih suo chü" meaning "the coming of great fortune and

happiness." See Hinduism, Buddhism

Architectural bilateral symmetry[edit]

An important feature in Chinese architecture is its emphasis on articulation and bilateral symmetry,

which signifies balance. Bilateral symmetry and the articulation of buildings are found everywhere in

Chinese architecture, from palace complexes to humble farmhouses. When possible, plans for

renovation and extension of a house will often try to maintain this symmetry provided that there is

enough capital to do so.[2] Secondary elements are positioned either side of main structures as two

wings to maintain overall bilateral symmetry. The buildings are typically planned to contain an even numbers of columns in a structure to produce odd numbers of bays (間). With the inclusion of a main

door to a building in the centre bay, symmetry is maintained

In contrast to the buildings, Chinese gardens are a notable exception which tends to be asymmetrical.

The principle underlying the garden's composition is to create enduring flow.[3]

Enclosure[edit]

Contemporary Western architectural practices typically involve surrounding a building by an open yard

on the property. This contrasts with much of traditional Chinese architecture, which involves

constructing buildings or building complexes that take up an entire property but encloses open spaces

within itself. These enclosed spaces come in two forms, the:[2]

Courtyard (院): The use of open courtyards is a common feature in many types of Chinese

architectures. This is best exemplified in the Siheyuan, which consists of an empty space

surrounded by buildings connected with one another either directly or through verandas.

"Sky well" (天井): Although large open courtyards are less commonly found in southern

Chinese architecture, the concept of a "open space" surrounded by buildings, which is seen in

northern courtyard complexes, can be seen in the southern building structure known as the "sky

well". This structure is essentially a relatively enclosed courtyard formed from the intersections of

closely spaced buildings and offer small opening to the sky through the roof space from the floor

up.

These enclosures serve in temperature regulation and in venting the building complexes. Northern

courtyards are typically open and facing the south to allow the maximum exposure of the building

windows and walls to the sun while keeping the cold northern winds out. Southern sky wells are

relatively small and serves to collect rain water from the roof tops; performing the same duties as Roman impluviums, while restricting the amount of sunlight that enters the building. Sky wells also serve as vents for rising hot air, which draws cool air from the lowers stories of the house and allows for exchange of cool air with the outside.

A skywell in a Fujian temple with

enclosing halls and bays on four sides

A tulou outer building encloses a smaller

circular building, which encloses an

ancestral hall and courtyard in the

center

A dugout dwelling enclosing an

underground courtyard.

An enclosing courtyard on four sides

from the Astor Court in theMetropolitan

Museum of Art

Hierarchy[edit]

A stone-carved pillar-gate, or que(闕), 6 m (20 ft) in total height, located at the tomb of Gao Yi in

Ya'an, Sichuanprovince, Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 AD);[4] notice the stone-carved decorations of roof tile eaves,

despite the fact that Han Dynasty stone que(part of the walled structures around tomb entrances) lacked wooden or

ceramic components (but often imitated wooden buildings with ceramic roof tiles).[5]

The projected hierarchy and importance and uses of buildings in traditional Chinese architecture are

based on the strict placement of buildings in a property/complex. Buildings with doors facing the front

of the property are considered more important than those facing the sides. Buildings facing away from

the front of the property are the least important.

South-facing buildings in the rear and more private parts of the property with higher exposure to

sunlight are held in higher esteem and reserve for elder members of the family or ancestral plaques.

Buildings facing east and west are generally for less senior members of the family, while buildings

near the front are typically for servants and hired help.[6]

Front-facing buildings in the back of properties are used particularly for rooms of celebratory rites and

for the placement of ancestral halls and plaques. In multiple courtyard complexes, central courtyards

and their buildings are considered more important than peripheral ones, the latter typically being used

as storage or servant's rooms or kitchens.[2]

Horizontal emphasis[edit]

Que 闕 towers along the walls of Tang-era Chang'an, as depicted in this 8th-century mural from Prince Li Chongrun's

tomb at theQianling Mausoleum in Shaanxi

Classical Chinese buildings, especially those of the wealthy are built with an emphasis on breadth and

less on height, with close heavy platform and a large roof that floats over this base, with the vertical

walls not well emphasized. This contrasts Western architecture, which tends to grow in height and

depth. Chinese architecture stresses the visual impact of the width of the buildings.

The halls and palaces in the Forbidden City, for example, have rather low ceilings when compared to

equivalent stately buildings in the West, but their external appearances suggest the all-embracing

nature of imperial China. These ideas have found their way into modern Western architecture, for

example through the work of Jørn Utzon.[7] This of course does not apply to pagodas, which are

limited to religious building complexes.

Cosmological concepts[edit]

Model of a Chinese Siheyuan in Beijing, which shows off the symmetry, enclose heavy platform and a large roof that

floats over this base, with the vertical walls not as well emphasized.

Chinese architecture from early times used concepts from Chinese cosmology such as feng

shui (geomancy) and Taoism to organize construction and layout from common residences to imperial

and religious structures.[2]This includes the use of:

Screen walls to face the main entrance of the house, which stems from the belief that evil

things travel in straight lines.

Talismans and imagery of good fortune:

Door gods  displayed on doorways to ward off evil and encourage the flow of good

fortune

Three anthropomorphic figures representing Fu Lu Shou (福祿壽 fú-lù-shòu) stars are

prominently displayed, sometimes with the proclamation "the threes star are present" (三星在

sān-xīng-zài)

Animals and fruits that symbolize good fortune and prosperity, such

as bats and pomegranates, respectively. The association is often done throughrebuses.

Orienting the structure with its back to elevated landscape and ensuring that there is water in

the front. Considerations are also made such that the generally windowless back of the structure

faces the north, where the wind is coldest in the winter

Ponds, pools, wells, and other water sources are usually built into the structure

The use of certain colors, numbers and the cardinal directions in traditional Chinese architecture

reflected the belief in a type of immanence, where the nature of a thing could be wholly contained in

its own form. Although the Western tradition gradually developed a body of architectural literature,

little was written on the subject in China, and the earliest text, the Kaogongji, was never disputed.

However, ideas about cosmic harmony and the order of the city were usually interpreted at their most

basic level, so a reproduction of the "ideal" city never existed. Beijing as reconstructed throughout the

15th and 16th century remains one of the best examples of traditional Chinese town planning.

Construction[edit]

Materials and history[edit]

Models of watchtowers and other buildings made during the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25–220); while these models

were made of ceramics, the real versions were made of easily perishable wood and have not survived.

Unlike other building construction materials, old wooden structures often do not survive because they

are more vulnerable to weathering and fires and are naturally subjected to rotting over time. Although

now nonexistent wooden residential towers, watchtowers, and pagodas predated it by centuries,

theSongyue Pagoda built in 523 is the oldest extant pagoda in China; its use of brick instead of wood

had much to do with its endurance throughout the centuries. From the Tang Dynasty (618–907)

onwards, brick and stone architecture gradually became more common and replaced wooden

edifices. The earliest of this transition can be seen in building projects such as the Zhaozhou

Bridge completed in 605 or the Xumi Pagoda built in 636, yet stone and brick architecture is known to

have been used in subterranean tomb architecture of earlier dynasties.

In the early 20th century, there were no known fully wood-constructed Tang Dynasty buildings that still

existed; the oldest so far discovered was the 1931 find of Guanyin Pavilion at Dule Monastery, dated

984 during the Song.[8] This was until the architectural historians Liang Sicheng (1901–1972), Lin

Huiyin (1904–1955), Mo Zongjiang (1916–1999), and Ji Yutang (1902–c. 1960s) discovered that the

Great East Hall of Foguang Temple on Mount Wutai in Shanxiwas reliably dated to the year 857 in

June 1937.[8] The groundfloor dimensions for this monastic hall measures 34 by 17.66 m (111 ft by

57 ft).[9] A year after the discovery at Foguang, the main hall of nearby Nanchan Temple on Mount

Wutai was reliably dated to the year 782,[10] while a total of six Tang era wooden buildings have been

found by the 21st century.[11] The oldest existent fully wooden pagoda that has survived intact is

the Pagoda of Fogong Templeof the Liao Dynasty, located in Ying County of Shanxi. While the East

Hall of Foguang Temple features only seven types of bracket arms in its construction, the 11th

century Pagoda of Fogong Temple features a total of fifty-four.[12]

The earliest walls and platforms in China were of rammed earth construction, and over time, brick and

stone became more frequently used. This can be seen in ancient sections of the Great Wall of China,

while the brick and stone Great Wall seen today is a renovation of the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644).

Structure[edit]

Main article: Ancient Chinese wooden architecture

Mortise and tenon work of tie beams and cross beams, from Li Jie's building manual Yingzao Fashi, printed in 1103.

Foundations: Most buildings are typically erected on raised platforms (臺基) as their

foundations. Vertical structural beams may rest on a raised stone pedestals (柱础) which

occasionally rest on piles. In lower class construction, the platforms are constructed of rammed

earth platforms that are unpaved or paved with brick or ceramics. In the simplest cases vertical

structural beams are driven into the ground directly. Upper class construction typically have high

raised stone paved rammed earth or stone foundations with ornately carved heavy stone

pedestals for supporting large vertical structural beams.[6] The vertical beams rest and remain on

their pedestals solely by friction and the pressure exerted by the building structure.[13]

Structural beams: Use of large structural timbers for primary support of the roof of a building.

Wooden timber, usually large trimmed logs, are used as load-bearing columns and lateral beams

for framing buildings and supporting the roofs. These beams are connected to each other directly

or in larger and higher class structures, tied indirectly together through the use of brackets. These

structural timbers are prominently displayed in finished structures. It is not definitively known how

the ancient builders raised the huge wooden load bearing columns into position.

Structural connections: Timber frames are typically constructed with joinery and doweling

alone, seldom with the use of glue or nails. These types of semi-rigid structural joints allow the

timber structure to resist bending and torsion while under high compression.[6] Structural stability

is further ensured through the use of heavy beams and roofs, which weighs the structure down.[13] The lack of glue or nails in joinery, the use of non-rigid support such asdougong, and the used

of wood as structural members allow the buildings to slide, flex, and hinged while absorbing

shock, vibration, and groundshift from earthquakes without significant damage to its structure.[6]

Walls: The common use of curtain walls or door panels to delineate rooms or enclose a

building, with the general deemphasis of load-bearing walls in most higher class construction.

However, with the reduction in availability of trees in the later dynasties for building structures, the

use of load-bearing walls in non-governmental or religious construction increased, with brick and

stone being commonly used.

Roofs: Flat roofs are uncommon while gabled roofs are almost omnipresent in traditional

Chinese architecture. Roofs are either built on roof cross-beams rests directly on vertical

structural beams. In higher class construction, roof supporting beams are support through

complex dougong bracketing systems that indirectly connect them to the primary structural

beams.[6] Three main types of roofs are found:

1. Straight inclined: Roofs with a single incline. These are the most economical type of

roofing and are most prevalent in commoner architectures

2. Multi-inclined: Roofs with 2 or more sections of incline. These roofs are used in higher

class constructions, from the dwellings of wealthy commoners to palaces.

3. Sweeping: Roofs with a sweeping curvature that rises at the corners of the roof. The

types of roof construction are usually reserved for temples and palaces although it may

also be found in the homes of the wealthy. In the former cases, the ridges of the roof are

usually highly decorated with ceramic figurines.

Roof apex: The roof apex of a large hall is usually topped with a ridge of tiles and statues for

both decorative purposes but also to weight down the layers of roofing tiles for stability. These

ridges are often well decorated, especially for religious or palatial structures. In some regions of

China, the ridges are sometimes extended or incorporated from the walls of the building to form

matouqiang (horse-head walls), which serve as a fire deterrent from drifting embers.

Classification by structure[edit]

A pavilion inside the Zhuozheng Garden in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, one of the finest gardens in China

The Zhaozhou Bridge, built from 595–605 during the Sui Dynasty. It is the oldest fully stone open-spandrelsegmental

arch bridge in the world.

Chinese classifications for architecture include:

亭 (Chinese: 亭; pinyin: Tíng) ting (Chinese pavilions)

臺 (simplified Chinese: 台; traditional Chinese: 臺; pinyin: Taí) tai (terraces)

樓 (simplified Chinese: 楼; traditional Chinese: 樓; pinyin: Lóu) lou (Multistory buildings)

閣 (simplified Chinese: 阁; traditional Chinese: 閣; pinyin: Gé) ge (Two-story pavilions)

軒 (轩) xuan (Verandas with windows)

塔 ta (Chinese pagodas)

榭 xie (Pavilions or houses on terraces)

屋 wu (Rooms along roofed corridors)

斗拱(Chinese: 斗 拱 ; pinyin: Dǒugǒng) dougong interlocking wooden brackets, often used in

clusters to support roofs and add ornamentation.

藻井 Caisson domed or coffered ceiling

Architectural types[edit]

Commoner[edit]

The houses of commoners, be they bureaucrats, merchants or farmers, tended to follow a set pattern:

the center of the building would be a shrine for the deities and the ancestors, which would also be

used during festivities. On its two sides were bedrooms for the elders; the two wings of the building

(known as "guardian dragons" by the Chinese) were for the junior members of the family, as well as

the living room, the dining room, and the kitchen, although sometimes the living room could be very

close to the center.

Sometimes the extended families became so large that one or even two extra pairs of "wings" had to

be built. This resulted in a U-shaped building, with a courtyard suitable for farm work; merchants and

bureaucrats, however, preferred to close off the front with an imposing front gate. All buildings were

legally regulated, and the law held that the number of stories, the length of the building and the

colours used depended on the owner's class. Some commoners living in areas plagued by bandits

built communal fortresses called Tulou for protection.

Imperial[edit]

There were certain architectural features that were reserved solely for buildings built for the Emperor

of China. One example is the use of yellow roof tiles, yellow having been the Imperial color; yellow

roof tiles still adorn most of the buildings within the Forbidden City. The Temple of Heaven, however,

uses blue roof tiles to symbolize the sky. The roofs are almost invariably supported

bybrackets ("dougong"), a feature shared only with the largest of religious buildings. The wooden

columns of the buildings, as well as the surface of the walls, tend to be red in color. Black is also a

famous color often used in pagodas. It was believed that the gods are inspired by the black color to

descend to the earth.

The Chinese five-clawed dragon, adopted by the first Ming emperor for his personal use, was used as

decoration on the beams, pillars, and on the doors on Imperial architecture. Curiously, the dragon was

never used on roofs of imperial buildings.

Only the buildings used by the imperial family were allowed to have nine jian (間, space between two

columns); only the gates used by the Emperor could have five arches, with the centre one, of course,

being reserved for the Emperor himself. The ancient Chinese favored the color red. The buildings

faced south because the north had a cold wind.

xisting structure in Jinci Temple

The large Dougong of Saint Mother Hall

Offerings Hall (Jin, 1168)

Offerings Hall interior, with the Memorial Archway (Ming, 1576) on the left.

Mirror Terrace, the front and back parts were built separately in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

When Ming style meets Qing style

Tangshuyu Temple, the Dougong was much smaller

Juntian Terrace built in the Qing Dynasty (18th century), the Dougong is very decorative.

When the Dougong was smaller, people were aware of the spirit of their times and wanted to express that architecturally. They didn't repeat the context with huge Tang/Song Dougong system. When we are building now, why do we just fake antiques by imitating the way old buildings look, but not learn from the way our ancestors think?

Maybe the question is what is a contemporary Buddhist temple? What are the transcendental aspects of Buddhism? The spirit of Zen? The pursuit of balance and harmony? In the Western world, a lot of contemporary churches are being built, with modern designs of architecture all the way down to objects like candle holders and chalices. Maybe for a contemporary temple, we should start with a new design of the incense burner.              at 7:22 AM No comments:   Email This BlogThis! Share to Twitter Share to Facebook Share to Pinterest Labels: arch/design, general thinking

Of wood and brick

Once upon a time, China was an empire of wooden structures. A trip to Shangxi Province made me extremely proud of my ancestors because of their superb techniques of engineering and construction.

One of the oldest preserved wooden structures is Foguang Temple, near Wutai. Its Great East Hall was constructed in 857 during the Tang Dynasty. (That was 1,153 years ago!) This is how it works structurally: the hipped roof frame sits on top of a series of columns with complex sets of brackets (called Dougong). The walls are not loading-bearing and there are large doors and windows. (Le Maison Domino??) The huge wooden bracket sets jump out four layers of arms, allowing the eaves to project almost 4 meters beyond the side of the walls. These brackets are fit together by joinery, without any glue or fasteners. Amazing precision and quality of carpentry!

The Manjusri Hall, another historic wooden structure in Foguang Temple, was constructed in 1137 during the Jin Dynasty. Without the "dropped ceiling" (Zaojing), we can see perfectly the structure of the roof frame.

100 kilometers away from Foguang Temple, stands the oldest wooden pergola in China - the Sakyamuni Pagoda of Fogong Temple in Ying County. It was built in 1056 during the Liao Dynasty. This 67-meter-tall fully wooden structure features 54 different types of Dougong, again, assembled with joinery, no glue or nails used. What a giant piece of 3D puzzle!

The most spectacular would be the Hanging Temple near Mount Heng. It was built 60 meters above the ground into a cliff. Seen from afar, it's like a rel