ARCHITECTURE

Chinese archetecure is grand and beautiful with elegant curves and arches that catch the eye. There were many different types of building styles in China. There were many famouse styles of temples and palaces. Chinese palaces were huge and very beautiful. They housed only royalty and their staff. The Emperor of China lived in a very large palace. Palaces had curved roofs that were designed to defend against evil spirits that would want to harm the people inside. Palaces were also used for war. The Forbidden Palace in the middle of Beijing has very long and thick walls that would have done a great job at protecting it from attack. Palaces were known for their design. Palace roofs, statues, and arches made palaces stand out to ordinary people and made them beautiful.

"Roofs are an important part of chinese architecture"(thinkquest). Palace roofs were very cool. They were always curved because it was believed that evil spirits were straight (Chinese Architecture). Since the roofs were curved they would be able to deflect any bad spirits. Palace roofs and temple roofs looked much the same. They always had multiple levels of roofs. Those levels gave chinese buildings the famous look that most people think of when looking at asian architecture. The roofs were also decorated into many different colors. Some were orange or black. While others were yellow or blue.



In this picture miniature statues are shown on this roof. This picture shows the the two level roofs that are commonly This is a great example of chinese attention to detail. Thought of when thinking of Chinese architecture.

Many roofs were also decorated with miniature satues. They were called gaurdians and each statue usually served a different purpose. Some statues were believed to be able to do certain things. Many statues were used as good luck charms and others could be used to ward off evil spirits. One perticular statue was called a foo dog. Its job was to guard the residents of the palace or temple from danger. In fact foo dogs weren't real dogs at all but loins! These loins were fierce looking and very menacing up close. In temples there were traditionally four large statues guarding the entrances to the temples (Temple Guardians). Some of the statues resembled soldiers that stood very tall. Many were as tall as the buildings roofs, and had weapons like swords and spears just as tall as you!

The foo dog is shown in all is ferocity. This particular foo dog is shown posing outside the forbidden city.

"Chinese temples used various pillars, beams, and arches interlaced with each other"(chravelchinaguide). Palace and temple arches were also similar in design and purpose. The arches were designed with intricate carvings and pictures that made them look out of this world. The purpose of the arches was very important (wikipedia). The arches were used to hold up the rest of the building and to hold up the roof of the building. The roofs of any temple or building wieghed a whole lot! That is why the arches were very strong and very important.



The Great Wall of China!

This is one example of an arch in chinese architecture. As seen here it is holding up and entrance way.

The Great Wall of China is probably the most recognizable structure in the world. It is the world's largest structure and it can even be seen from outer space! Many people come from all over the world to see this amazing wall. The Great Wall of China is about 6000 kilometers long and is fifteen to thirty feet high depending on the surface it is on. The wall goes through the beautiful valleys of China. Believe it or not, some people have even walked the whole length of the wall! The Great Wall has an amazing history. It took over 300 years to build! Unfortunately, some of the people that helped build it died during the construction. The wall's construction began B.C.E. (Before the Common Era). The Great Wall took longer to build than any other structure on earth. Today, the Great Wall of China is one of the seven world wonders and is one of Asia's most visited places.

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