Knowledge of Ancient Architecture

Large woodwork is the main structural part of China's wooden frame building, composed of columns, beams, square, purlin, etc., but also the proportion of the wooden building scale and the appearance of the form of the important determinants.

By the "Kao Gong Ji" contained in the "attack on the wood of the work of seven", it can be seen that the Zhou Dynasty carpentry has been divided into very fine, and later generations of different division of labor. Song dynasty house appurtenances flat dark, algal wells, hooks, Bo sewing, hanging fish production, small wood work, the Ming and Qing dynasty is a large wood work. Song dynasty large wood work outside another saw work, Ming and Qing dynasty also belong to the large wood work. Wooden frame house building design, construction to the main woodwork, is always the same.

Ancient Chinese architecture in the early Tang Dynasty has been stereotyped, standardized, resulting in the design and construction methods that are compatible with this. Song "building law style", already contains a set of design principles, standards, and with drawings of the material part of the system (that is, the ancient modulus system, see material part). The system was used until the end of the Yuan Dynasty. At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, a large number of construction of the capital city palace, has no longer use the material part system. Early Qing dynasty issued by the Ministry of engineering "engineering practice" basically used the bucket mouth system (see bucket mouth), can still see traces of the material system, but mechanically not as rigorous as the material system, a variety of components of the standard specification is also no consistent guidelines. In essence, the old design system has been abandoned, while the new design system is not perfect.

The earliest known record of specific structural forms is the Song Dynasty "building method" in the hall structure, hall structure, cluster angle beam structure of three. Based on the existing examples, it can be inferred that these three structures have been commonly used at least in the early Tang Dynasty.

The hall structure: the whole structure is divided into three integral layers of columns, paving, and roofs in the horizontal direction, which are installed layer by layer from the bottom to the top and stacked up. If you build a building, you only need to increase the columns and paving layer (flat sitting) can be. The houses with this structure are rectangular in plan. There are four types of floor slots, i.e., the bottom slot of the gold box bucket, double slot, single slot and the bottom slot of the center bucket.

Hall structure: with horizontal vertical roof racks. Each roof by a number of columns and beams of varying lengths combined, only in the gable columns on the use of paving. Every two roof frames with rafters, loops, etc. connected to the room. The number of rooms in each house is not limited, as long as the number of rafters, the corresponding step frame rafters equal length, the number of beams and columns used in the roof, the combination can be different, so there is no need to specify the plan form. Hall structure construction is simpler than the hall structure, but not suitable for building multi-storey houses. The hall structure is used to build small-scale houses without the use of paving, which is called "column and beam work" and is commonly used. Existing examples, there is a synthesis of the hall and hall structure of the form, such as the temple hall, with vertical, horizontal, vertical three directions of the columns, beams, paving and other components, interlocking, composed of a whole, the construction of difficult, after the Liao Jin have not been used.

Cluster angle beam structure: used for the square or polygonal plane of the building, each column on the head of the angle beam and the center of the door post (Lei Gongzhu) intersected to form a round or square conical roof.

In the Ming and Qing official buildings, only the surface form of the hall structure exists, the actual structure of the hall, known as the "big wood big style". The universal application of "columns and beams", known as "large wood small style". The cluster of corner beams, known as "save the tip", mostly used for small pavilions.

In addition, in the Yangtze River Basin and the southeast and southwest, used to wear bucket frame. It belongs to the same horizontal vertical roof frame with the hall structure, but the hall structure is raised by layer by layer and shorten the beam to withstand the weight of purlins and roof, so it is called lifting beam frame. Through the bucket frame with columns directly bearing purlins, without beams, columns through the square is only a connecting component.

Large woodwork components, complex construction, the video may look more clearly.

Due to the different aesthetics of each dynasty, as well as the gradual maturation of technology, making the design of architectural details more and more exquisite and more varied styles. (The following images are from A History of Chinese Architecture, Sixth Edition)

The Han Dynasty was the first peak of ancient Chinese architecture. At this time, the high platform building to reduce, a large number of houses and pavilions increased, the layout of the courtyard has been basically finalized, and and the political, economic, patriarchal, ritual and other systems at that time, closely integrated, enough to meet the needs of the community in various aspects of the Chinese architectural system has been roughly formed. Arch in the Han Dynasty has been a great development, it is a very large number of types, can be said to have reached the degree of strange. In a variety of que, tombs and portrait bricks we can see its image.

The North and South Dynasties is a period of great development of architectural skills, in terms of architectural decoration, in the inheritance of the previous generation on the basis of, "in the process of performance on the absorption of all kinds of round and vivid carvings of the "Greek-Buddhist style", decorative motifs, flowers, plants, birds, animals, characters of the performance of the Han Dynasty, it is out of the style, innovation, style", enriching my style. Style", enriched the image of my Chinese architecture. Single building in the original architectural art and technology on the basis of further development, the pavilion-style building is quite common, the plane is mostly square.

Sui-Tang Five Dynasties period, the main building in the center, there is a clear vertical axis. By the three doors (symbolizing the "three liberation", also known as the door) to start, the longitudinal columns of several heavy halls and pavilions. In the middle of the corridor into several courtyards. On both sides of the main building, imitating the palace residence corridor courtyard layout, arranged a number of small courtyards, each with a special purpose, such as Pure Land Courtyard, the scripture courtyard, library courtyard, etc.. Pagoda location from the center of the temple gradually become independent. Before the hall is often used to embellish the left and right and stand not too large often solid twin towers, or in front of the temple, behind the temple, outside the central axis of the tower yard.

Song, Liao and Jin dynasties, the building scale is reduced, deepening the group vertical development, the building is more beautiful than in the Tang Dynasty, gorgeous and rich in change, there are a variety of complex forms of the temple and pavilion. The introduction of the "building method style", the guidance of the building, building stereotypes to a strict degree. Masonry tower appearance in imitation of wood on the deliberate pursuit of details of real, too cumbersome. Architectural style reveals distinctive regional characteristics.

Ming and Qing dynasties are the last two feudal dynasties in Chinese history. The ancient Chinese architecture seen today is mainly of these two dynasties. The architecture of the Ming and Qing dynasties lacked creativity compared to that of the Tang and Song dynasties, and tended to be programmed and decorated. However, the excellent experience of ancient Chinese architecture is still reflected in city planning, palace architecture and garden architecture. The local characteristics of architecture and various national styles were fully developed in this period.

Finally, a set of documentaries on great woodwork is attached

The above pictures and videos are from the Internet.

Part VIII

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