Chronological Timeline of Chinese Architecture through the Dynasties

Contents

1. The Chronological Timeline of Chinese Dynasties

2. Chinese Architecture

3. Ancient Era

a. Three Sovereigns and the Five Emperors (before 2070 BC)

b. Xia Dynasty (2070-1600 BC)

c. Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC)

d. Chou Dynasty (1046-221BC)

3. Imperial Era

a. Chin Dynasty (221-206 BC)

b. Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD)

c. The Six Dynasties (220-589)

f. Sui Dynasty (581-618)

g. Tang Dynasty (618-907)

h. Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (907-960)

i. Liao Dynasty (907-1125)

j. Song Dynasty (960-1279)

k. Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368)

l. Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)

m. Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)

4. Modern Era

a. Republic of China (1912-1949)

b. People’s Republic of China (1949 till present)

c. Republic of China (Taiwan) (1949 till present)

5. Appendix

6. References

Chinese Architecture

The art of building in China has always been closely related to the deep feeling of the Chinese

people for the perfect harmony and order which is reflected in the world of nature. The general

arrangement, planning and orientation of Chinese structures were rooted in religious and

philosophical ideas. This can be clearly seen in the basic plans and principles of construction,

which have remained the same during many centuries. The story of Chinese architecture

revolves around the development of timber construction technique and its expressive

elaboration in a traditional society.

Ancient Era

1. Three Sovereigns and the Five Emperors (before 2070 BC)

2. Xia Dynasty (2070-1600BC)

3. Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC)

4. Chou Dynasty (1046-221BC)

Three Sovereigns and the Five Emperors (before 2070 BC)

Xia Dynasty (2070-1600 BC)

Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC)

Shang dynasty or also known as Yin dynasty, was the second dynasty in the Chinese dynasty,

after the Xia dynasty. The Shang dynasty was one of the dynasties that had made great

contributions towards the Chinese civilization. They were originally come from a tribe of people

that came from the lower region of the Yellow River during the Xia dynasty. It was establish by

King Tang in 1675 BC. They ruled for over 600 years and were lead by 30 different emperors.

The Shang worshipped the “Shang DI”, the god that ruled over the lesser god of the sun the

moon, the wind, the rain and the other natural forces and places. Not just that they also

worshipped their great ancestors because they believed that after their death, they are still

involved in the affairs of the family and descendant.

The Shang Dynasty ended in about 1050 BCE, after the conquerors from the state of Zhou

invaded the capital. The Zhou conquerors claimed to overthrow the Shang Dynasty for moral

reasons. They said that the Shang king was evil and that heaven no longer wanted him to rule.

They blamed the Shang’s downfall on its king’s excessive drinking, indulgent lifestyle, and

immoral behaviour.

In the cities, people lived in rows of rectangular houses, built from wood and rammed earth. And

in the center of the city, there was a big palace/temple on a high earth platform. There was also

a city wall of rammed earth around the Shang capital at An-yang.

Unlike the mud bricks wall that were built in the West Asia and Egypt, the walls in this period

were built by the method of piling up dirt and pounding it with stones or wooden mallet until it

was hard as a rock. The thickness of the wall was only about 12 feet at the base.

During this period the Shang people were also building rammed earth alters in circular pattern to

worship the heaven and squares to worship the earth.

On the other hand on the countryside of the northern side of china, a lot of the Shang dynasty

people seen to have been living in caves dug out of the dirt: sunken houses with roof made of

domes of sod. Fire pits were built in the middle of the house to provide heat during the winter.

Walls and floors were plasters to keep them clean. And during summer, people sometimes

moved out from their dark sob houses and lived in a tree house built on a wooden platform with

roof made from poles and branches of trees.

Chou Dynasty (1046-221BC)

Imperial Era

1. Chin Dynasty (221-206 BC)

2. Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD)

3. The Six Dynasties (220-589)

4. Sui Dynasty (581-618)

5. Tang Dynasty (618-907)

6. Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (907-960)

7. Liao Dynasty (907-1125)

8. Song Dynasty (960-1279)

9. Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368)

10. Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)

11. Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)

Imperial Era

Chin Dynasty (221-206 BC)

The Chin Dynasty is forever well known for its great emperor, Chin Shih Huang Ti. When Chin

Shih Huang Ti subjected the lords of Chou and brought all of China under one rule, he made

possible the development of a genuinely national architecture, which was more grand than any

that had existed before. The magnificent palaces with which he adorned the new capital, the

Great Wall and the network of military highways which he had built were as remarkable as the

fantastic power his warriors and the wealth of his treasury.

There was a fusion of the varied regional styles of Chou architecture, establishing a new, single

imperial style, which was looked upon as an impressive symbol of national greatness. Under the

“First Emperor”, monumental architecture was thought to be indispensable to sound and

powerful government.

Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD)

The Han emperors, who succeeded Shih Huang Ti, also believed that a great architecture was

necessary in keeping a government stable and sound. They considered great size and

overpowering beauty as the appropriate means of inspiring awe.

Western Han

Cha’ang (Sian), the capital of Western Han was the capital of Western Sian. The walled capital

city of Sian was surrounded by a moat. It had three monumental gateways which opened each

face of the enclosing wall and its nine major avenues, running each way dominated the network

of streets.

The reign of Han Wu Ti was a time of the erection of countless pleasure palaces more

sumptuous than those of the Chin dynasty. There were a number of architectural constructions

designed to establish contact with the supernatural world. This clearly showed the relations

between architecture and beliefs. In 109BC, a ‘Ming Tang’, a royal hall was built on an ancient

site in Shantung. This structure had a single apartment with a broad porch on four sides and a

wide overhanging roof of thatch. A moat encircled the shrine precinct.

After Han Wu Ti, the usurper Wang Mang, who momentarily replaced the Han line in the royal

seat, used architecture to establish his claim to rule. He built a succession of monuments of the

sort traditionally associated with kingship: a ‘Ming Tang’, a ‘Pi-yung’ lakeside hall, a ‘Ling T’ai’

and a ninefold ancestral shrine. All of these were overpowering in size, built of a larger scale,

and therefore, fit for an emperor. Wang Mang also built the first ‘Ming Tang’ in the imperial

capital. This was a two-storey building, ‘round above and square below’, with eight windows and

nine chambers. The ‘Ming Tang’ uses a magical number system in the arrangements of

structures. The whole system was meant to embody a particular cosmological concept. Among

other architectural wonders that he built was an important shrine to the “Yellow Emperor” which

was, as usual, gigantic in size and took the form of a Greek cross in plan.

Eastern Han

When civil war destroyed most of Sian, the Eastern Han line came to power. The capital had

now shifted to Honan. The imperial palace compound, together with its great park, occupied the

rear centere of the city. The axial boulevards were more clearly marked by the principal

government offices.

Palaces, mansions, and public edifices followed a plan which was more regular, which became

routine later on. A succession of courts, each court more private than the one before, was

aligned along a major axis. There were front and side gates, and a major gate on the axis,

which was by itself a proper building with interior chambers.

The major hall with its platform and left and right stairs was often two storied. On the east and

west sides of the hall were areas called ‘hsiang’, which were partitioned off from the main

chamber by light screens or curtains. Sometimes all elements of the building were covered by a

single roof, but the ‘hsiang’ were roofed separately and had the appearance of wings. ‘Hsien’ is

another architectural type current during this dynasty. ‘Hsien’ is a raised porch attached to the

front of the hall.

The official architecture was lavishly decorated with sculptures and paintings. Human and

animal caryatids, brilliant polychomy, gilding, jade and bronze ornamentation enriched all

architectural surfaces and forms.

Another significant feature of the Han Dynasty was the towers. Han palaces had impressive

towers of various sorts. Most of these were like the ancient ‘t’ai’ in form, being raised on bearing

walls of rammed earth which were faced with stone for greater beauty. Gateways were marked

by paired towers called ‘ch’ueh’ which sometimes so modified that they took the form of

monumental masonry pillars flanking an entranceway. Another towerm the ‘t’ai’ for

‘communication with Heaven’ was distinctly magical in function and was suppose to serve as a

lure for Taoist Immortals. Another tower, which was furnished with chambers decorated with

paintings of Heaven and Earth, the Supreme Unity and various supernatural beings, was

equipped with sacrificial utensils to allow contact with the spirits of Heaven.

Under Eastern Han, Buddhism made a partial penetration of China. Its first recognised temples

were probably erected by the state and took on a simple form similar to that of secular halls. In

190AD, a Buddha shrine was erected, it was a two-story pavilion surmounted by a finial with

nine bronze disks. Inside the pavilion sat a human figure fashioned out of gilt bronze. The shrine

was surrounded by galleries and, like the stupa-ghara of India, was a forerunner of the later

Chinese pagoda.

The Six Dynasties (220-589)

This period was marked by political instability and, for a long time, official architectural

commissions were carried out in a smaller scale and in the dominant style of Han.

The architecture of this period was very much influenced and motivated by the new religion,

Buddhism. As soon as official interest turned to the new faith, Buddhist precincts began to be

‘dignified’ in the traditional Chinese way, that is, with walls, high gatehouses, galleries and

monumental halls. Buddhist craftsmanship was established in an impressive scale. The pagoda,

fully developed as an architectural form, was specially Buddhist.

The Six Dynasties style in wooden architecture could be seen in the halls, galleries and

gatehouses of the Japanese monastery of Horyuji. These are characterised by an effective

simplicity and a strict symmetry about both axes.

The Development of the Chinese Bracketing System

References

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Tingkatan 4. Kuala Lumpur : Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka.

3. Ching, Francis. D. K. (2007) A Global History of Architecture. New Jersey: John Wiley

and Sons Inc. Hoboken.

4.