What are the characteristics of common railing styles in high-rise buildings, palaces and temples in different periods in ancient China?

The style of railings is common in palaces and temples. Two watchcolumns are erected beside the eaves column, and three beams are horizontally arranged between the watchcolumns. The top one is called patrol stick, and the middle and bottom two are called basin lip and floor. Between the patrol stick and the basin lip, in Ming and Qing dynasties, lotus leaf net bottles were used for carving, and hollow porcelain plates were made between the basin lip and the ground.

Before the Ming Dynasty, sculptures such as lotus leaf bottles were rarely seen. The railing images reflected in the wood structure and masonry structure were mostly bucket pillars between the patrol ruler and the basin lip, while the China plate carvings between the basin lip and the ground were mostly hooks. A small piece of paper with a single hook board mentioned in Architectural French: the flower board can be made of Chinese characters or hook pieces. The relief of the Northern Wei Dynasty in Yungang Grottoes in Datong, the murals of the Tang Dynasty in Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, and the cabinets of the Liao Dynasty in Baojia Tibetan Hall of Huayan Temple in Datong all reflect the image of the hooked China board. It can be considered that during the 800 years from the 5th century to the 12th century, hooked China boards were very popular in aristocratic buildings. As for the general temple houses, the floors in our country are often simplified as square bars with three or one corner facing outwards, which is generally called horizontal side type.