Mascots of the Guangzhou Asian Games
Wordless Wednesday
Showing posts with label Beijing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Beijing. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Wordless /Wordful Wednesday - Temple of Heaven, Beijing
The Temple of Heaven was surely one of my favorite sights that I visited in Beijing. It is a fantastic structure, symmetrical beauty in proportion and and as such has been listed as a World Heritage site. The temple itself is quite a huge park, which is split into several parts.
The main attraction here is the 'Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest', the main building in the complex. The Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties would come here each winter solstice to make sacrifices to Heaven and to pray for good harvest.
The detail is just splendid in every sense of the word
My tour guide told me that the circular wooden structure is wholly made of wood without the use of single nail or cement and it has been standing for centuries. How cool is that!
Several interesting features of the temple complex symbolize the connection between Heaven and Earth, of circle and square structures. It reflects on the ancient Chinese belief of "The heaven is round and the earth is square".
a bronze urn at the Temple of Heaven
First Commenter - Liza
The main attraction here is the 'Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest', the main building in the complex. The Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties would come here each winter solstice to make sacrifices to Heaven and to pray for good harvest.
The detail is just splendid in every sense of the word
My tour guide told me that the circular wooden structure is wholly made of wood without the use of single nail or cement and it has been standing for centuries. How cool is that!
Several interesting features of the temple complex symbolize the connection between Heaven and Earth, of circle and square structures. It reflects on the ancient Chinese belief of "The heaven is round and the earth is square".
a bronze urn at the Temple of HeavenWednesday, March 18, 2009
Wordless Wednesday - Forbidden City
For as long as I can remember, I have always been fascinated with the Forbidden City and having to experience the historical significance of Imperial China was simply amazing. The Forbidden City a.k.a Imperial Palace, was the best preserved imperial palace during the last two dynasties (Ming and Qing). It is called the Forbidden City because only the Chinese royalty was allowed to enter the palace. These days, the city is no longer forbidding, but inviting. There are tons of beautiful buildings with fabulous roof architectures decorated with colored paintings of the dragon and phoenix embracing the royal power.
Here are some snippets of my trip.
The historic and sprawling complex is mostly painted in just two colors, yellow and red, which can be seen throughout the city. Red represents happiness, good fortune and wealth whereas yellow is the color of the Imperial.
A pair of Bronze lions, plated with gold. As you can see from the pictures, the male lion with his right paw resting on a ball(a symbol of power)and the female with her left paw fondling a cub(the cycle of life).
Golden imperial roofs which symbolized royalty.
In Chinese mythology the dragon is composed of 9 different animals to ward off evil spirits. It also reflects the social status of the building.
Huge stone carving, Hall of Preserved Harmony
The largest stone carving in the Imperial Palace, known as the Dragon walk, is behind the Hall of Preserved Harmony, in the centre of the stairway. It is a huge piece of marble showing 9 dragons toying with pearls, weighing more than 200 tonnes.
***************************
First Commenter-Lina
Here are some snippets of my trip.
The historic and sprawling complex is mostly painted in just two colors, yellow and red, which can be seen throughout the city. Red represents happiness, good fortune and wealth whereas yellow is the color of the Imperial.
A pair of Bronze lions, plated with gold. As you can see from the pictures, the male lion with his right paw resting on a ball(a symbol of power)and the female with her left paw fondling a cub(the cycle of life).
Golden imperial roofs which symbolized royalty.
In Chinese mythology the dragon is composed of 9 different animals to ward off evil spirits. It also reflects the social status of the building.
Huge stone carving, Hall of Preserved HarmonyThe largest stone carving in the Imperial Palace, known as the Dragon walk, is behind the Hall of Preserved Harmony, in the centre of the stairway. It is a huge piece of marble showing 9 dragons toying with pearls, weighing more than 200 tonnes.
***************************
First Commenter-Lina
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)