What are the basic features of ancient Chinese architecture

(I) Wooden frame-based structure

Ancient Chinese architecture customarily used wooden frames as the load-bearing structure of the house. Wooden beams and columns system in the Spring and Autumn period before the first century has been initially completed and widely used, to the Han Dynasty development is more mature. Wooden structure can be roughly divided into lifting beam type, through the bucket type, well dry type, to lift the beam type is most commonly used. Carrying beam structure is along the depth of the house in the base of the columns, columns on the frame beams, beams on the overlap of several layers of melon columns and beams, and then in the uppermost layer of beams on the spine of the melon columns, composed of a group of roof frames. Between the two parallel frames, the horizontal square is connected to the upper end of the columns, and purlins are placed on the head of the beams and the ridge gourd columns on each level to connect the frames and carry the roof. The rafters between purlins form the skeleton of the roof. In this way, by two sets of frames can constitute a room, a house can be one or more.

The arch is the most specialized member of Chinese wooden frame construction. Doo is a bucket-shaped cushion wood block, the arch is a bow-shaped short wood, they are layer by layer crisscrossing stacked into a group of large and small brackets, placed on the column head to support the load of the beam and the eaves to the outside of the pick out. To the Tang and Song, the arch development to the peak, from the simple pads and eave components developed into a link between the Liang Fang placed on the column network above a circle of "well" lattice-shaped composite beam. It is in addition to the eaves to the outside, to the inside to support the ceiling, the main function is to maintain the integrity of the wooden frame, become an indispensable part of large buildings. After the Song Dynasty, the wooden frame increased, the column height, wooden frame nodes used in the gradual reduction of the arch. To the Yuan, Ming, Qing, the column head between the use of frontal square and with the beam square, etc., frame integrity to strengthen the shape of the arch becomes smaller, no longer play a structural role, the arrangement of the Tang and Song Song is more dense, decorative role more and more strengthened, the formation of the ornaments for the display of the difference between the ranks.

The advantages of wood frame is: first, the load-bearing structure and maintenance structure is separated, the weight of the building all by the wood frame support, the walls only play a role in maintenance and separation of space. Second, easy to adapt to different climatic conditions, can be due to the different cold and warm regions, with the appropriate treatment of the height of the house, the thickness of the walls, what kind of materials, as well as to determine the location and size of the windows and doors. Third, due to the unique nature of wood and construction nodes have room for expansion and contraction, even if the wall collapses and the house does not collapse, in favor of reducing earthquake damage. Fourthly, it is convenient to take materials and process them locally. Ancient forests in the middle reaches of the Yellow River, timber than masonry to facilitate processing and manufacturing.

(B) unique monolithic modeling

The monolithic ancient Chinese buildings can be roughly divided into three parts: the foundation, the body, the roof. All important buildings are built on the base of the pedestal, the general pedestal for a layer, large halls such as Beijing Ming and Qing dynasty Imperial Palace Taihe Temple, built on a tall triple pedestal. The plan form of a single building is mostly rectangular, square, hexagonal, octagonal, circular. These different plan forms play an important role in constituting the fa?ade image of the building monolith. Due to the use of wood frame structure, the processing of the roof to be very flexible, doors, windows, columns and walls are often based on the use of materials and parts of the different dispositions and decorations, greatly enriching the image of the roof.

The roof of ancient Chinese buildings in a variety of forms. As early as in the Han Dynasty, there are hipped, hiatus, overhanging mountains, hoard roof, save the tip of several basic forms, and there is a heavy eaves roof. Later appeared in the hook and lap, single-slope roof, cross-slope roof, pelvis roof, arched roof, vaulted roof and many other forms. In order to protect the wooden frame, the roof is often used larger eaves. But the eave is an obstacle to light, as well as the roof of the rain leakage is easy to wash down the foundation, and therefore later used the reverse curved roof or roof lift, corner warping, so the roof and the corner of the roof appears more light and lively.

(C) the axis of symmetry, square and neat group combination and layout

Ancient Chinese architecture to many single building combination into a group of architectural groups, large to the palace, small to the mansion, and so on. Its layout form has a strict directional, often north-south, only a few groups of buildings due to terrain restrictions to take the form of a variation, but also due to religious beliefs or the influence of feng shui ideas and the direction of the variation. The layout of the square and strict ideas, mainly from the geographical location of the middle reaches of the Yellow River in ancient China and the influence of Confucianism in the positive ideas.

The layout of ancient Chinese architectural complexes was always based on a major vertical axis, with the main buildings arranged on the main axis, and the secondary buildings arranged on both sides in front of the main buildings, facing each other from east to west, and composed of a square or rectangular courtyard. This courtyard layout not only meets the needs of safety and sunshine to prevent wind and cold, but also conforms to the patriarchal and ritual system of ancient Chinese society. When a group of courtyards can not meet the needs of the main building before and after the extension of the layout of multiple courtyards, in the main axis on both sides of the layout of the cross courtyard (auxiliary axis). Confucius Temple in Qufu in the main axis of the layout of the ten courtyards, but also in the main axis on both sides of the layout of the multi-courtyard. It is one axis before the Kuiwenge, and three axes side by side after the Kuiwenge. As for the altar and temple, mausoleums and other ceremonial buildings layout, it is even more rigid. This strict layout is not rigid, but will be more into, more courtyard space, arranged to become a change of quite personalized space series. Like Beijing's courtyard houses, its four courtyards are different. The first one is a horizontal long inverted courtyard, the second one is a rectangular triple courtyard, the third one is a square quadrangle courtyard, and the fourth one is a horizontal long cover house courtyard. Four courtyards of different planes, with different facades of buildings, in the courtyard of dill planting trees, rocks and bonsai, so that the spatial environment is fresh and lively, serene and pleasant.

(D) varied decoration and decoration

State ancient architecture for the decoration, decoration, where all the building parts or components, are to beautify the image chosen, the color of the parts and components due to the nature of the different and different.

The foundation and steps are the base of the house and the steps into the house, but to the carving, with railings, it seems particularly solemn and majestic. Roof decoration can make the roof profile image more beautiful. Such as the Palace of Imperial China Hall, heavy eaves hipped roof, five ridges and four slopes, the ridge at each end of a large kiss decorated with a dragon-shaped, open mouth to swallow the ridge, the tail rolled up, the four hanging ridges of the gable part of each decorated with nine glazed beasts, adding to the image of the roof of the artistic force.

Doors, windows, partitions belong to the eaves decoration, is separated from the indoor and outdoor space spacers, but the decorative is particularly strong. Doors and windows with its various images, patterns, colors to enhance the artistic effect of the building facade. Inner eaves decoration is used to divide the internal space of the house device, commonly used partition doors, walls, dobby, bookcases, etc., they can make the indoor space to produce the effect of both separation and connectivity. Another device to divide the interior space is a variety of cover, such as a few legs cover, floor cover, round light cover, flower cover, balustrade cover, etc., and some have to install glass or paste yarn, painted with flowers or inscriptions, so that the interior is full of flavor of the book.

Smallpox that is the ceiling of the interior, is a decoration over the interior. General residential housing production is relatively simple, more wood made of net frame, nailed to the beam, and then paste the paper, called "plasterwork ceiling". Important buildings such as the temple, the wooden support bars in the beams built between the square grid network, the grid within the wooden boards, painted with colorful paintings, known as "wells ceiling". Algae well is more decorative than the ceiling of a roof interior decoration, it is a complex structure, below the round, by three layers of wood frame intersection composed of an upwardly elevated like a well ceiling, more for the temple, the Buddha altar of the upper center, the intersection of wood such as wells, painted algae, it is known as algae wells.

On the building Shi color painting is an important feature of ancient Chinese architecture, is indispensable to the building of a decorative art. It was originally applied to the beams, pillars, doors, windows and other wooden components used to prevent corrosion, moth-proof paint, and then gradually developed and evolved into color painting. In ancient times, the application of color painting on the building, there is a strict distinction between the levels, the people's houses are not allowed to paint color painting, is in the Forbidden City, different nature of the building painting color painting also has a strict distinction. Among them and the seal painting is the highest level, the content of the dragon as the theme, applied to the outer court, the inner court of the main hall, the style of noble. Spin color painting is patterned color painting, picture layout elegant and flexible, rich in change, commonly used in secondary palace and hall, door hips and other buildings. Another is the Su-style color painting, landscape, figures, grasses and insects, flowers as the content, mostly used in the garden on top of the pavilions.

(E) Landscape garden landscape

An important feature of classical Chinese gardens is that there is a mood, which, like classical Chinese poetry, painting and music, focuses on writing. Landscape gardeners use landscape, rocks and gullies, flowers, trees and buildings to express a certain artistic realm, so classical Chinese gardens are known as landscaped gardens. From the creation of landscaping art, it takes in all the images, shaping the typical, to the allegory of self, through observation, refinement, as much as the state of things, poor things, the beauty of nature sublimated into artistic beauty, in order to express their own feelings. Appreciation of the scene triggered in the scene caused some kind of feelings, and then sublimated into a mood, so appreciation is also a kind of artistic re-creation. This artistic re-creation, is the viewer through the scenery to express their feelings, send thoughts of self-expression process, is a kind of spiritual sublimation, so that people open polyester, to achieve a higher level of thought.

In classical Chinese gardens, the landscape is roughly divided into: the realm of governance, the realm of the immortals, the realm of nature. Confucianism is practical, with a high sense of social responsibility, concern for social life and interpersonal relationships, moral and ethical values and governance of the country's political significance, this idea is reflected in the garden landscaping is the realm of the world. Laozhuang thought of natural tranquility and refining the body and mind to quiet observation, intuition for the service, romanticism for the aesthetic, artistic expression of the natural realm. Buddhism, Taoism and the pursuit of nirvana and fantasize about becoming immortal, garden landscaping is reflected in the realm of immortals. The realm of governance is mostly found in royal gardens, such as the Yuanmingyuan Forty Scenes, about half of which belong to the realm of governance, and contain almost all the philosophical, political, economic, moral and ethical contents of Confucianism. Most of the natural realm is reflected in the literati gardens, such as the Canglang Pavilion of Su Shunqin in the Song Dynasty, and Sima Guang's Duluo Park. The realm of the immortals is reflected in the royal gardens and temple gardens, such as the Yuanmingyuan in the Pengdao Yaotai, Fanghu Shengjing, Qingcheng Mountain, the ancient Changdao Guan of the Huixian Bridge, Wudang Mountain, the South Rock Palace of the Ascension Rock.

The spiritual connotation of ancient Chinese architectural art is characterized by three things. First, the unity of aesthetic value and political and ethical value. Buildings with high artistic value also play a role in maintaining and strengthening the social political and ethical system and ideology. Secondly, it is rooted in the deep traditional culture and shows the distinctive spirit of humanism. Third, it is highly general and comprehensive. Often use all the factors and techniques synthesized into a whole image, from the combination of space to color decoration are integral parts of the whole, draw out any one of them will be the overall effect.