What are the three treasures in the ancient city of Pingyao?

Located in the central part of Shanxi Province in northern China, the ancient city of Pingyao was built during the reign of King Xuan of the Western Zhou Dynasty (827 B.C. to 782 B.C.) and expanded in the third year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty (1370 A.D.), with a history of more than 2,700 years. So far, it has preserved the basic style of the county town during the Ming and Qing Dynasties (1368-1911 AD) relatively well, and can be regarded as the most complete surviving ancient city in China's Han ethnic area.

Pingyao is said to have three treasures, and the ancient city wall is one of them. Pingyao County City Wall. Built in the third year of the Ming Dynasty (1370), with a circumference of 6.4 kilometers, it is one of the earliest and largest existing city walls in Shanxi. Ming and Qing dynasties have repair, but basically still early Ming form and construction. The city is square, the wall is about 12 meters high, the appearance of all brick, the wall of the stacks, outside the wall has a moat, the depth and width of 4 meters. The city opened six doors around, east and west each two, north and south each one. The east and west swindle outside and built with urns, in order to facilitate the defense. There are 3,000 battlements and 72 enemy towers, which are said to symbolize Confucius' 3,000 disciples and 72 saints. The city wall has endured more than 600 years of wind and rain, and still survives today.

The streets, stores and houses in Pingyao Old Town maintain their traditional layout and appearance. The streets are in the shape of a cross and the stores are built along them. The stores are sturdy and tall, with colorful paintings under the eaves and colorful carvings on the beams, giving them an antique look. The residents' houses behind the stores are all courtyard with green bricks and gray tiles, with clear axes and symmetry. The whole ancient city presents a rustic look.

Out of the north gate of the ancient city has Zhenguo Temple, which is the second treasure of the ancient city. The temple's Wanfo Hall was built in the period of the Five Dynasties (10th century A.D.) and is now the third oldest wooden structure in China, with a history of more than 1,000 years. The colorful sculptures of the Five Dynasties period in the hall are rare sculpture art treasures.

The third treasure of the ancient city is the Shuanglin Temple located in the southwest of the city. The temple was built in the second year of Wuping of the Northern Qi Dynasty (571 AD). There are more than 2,000 colorful statues from the Yuan to Ming Dynasties (13th to 17th centuries A.D.) preserved in more than 10 halls in the temple, which is regarded as "the treasure house of colorful sculpture art".

Pingyao was one of the birthplaces of the famous "Jin merchants" in ancient China. In the fourth year of the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty (1824 A.D.), China's first modern bank was born in Pingyao in the form of the "Rishengchang" ticket company. Three years later, Rishengchang set up branches in many provinces of China, and in the 1840s, it expanded its business to Japan, Singapore, Russia and other countries. In the 1840s, it expanded its business to Japan, Singapore, Russia and other countries. Driven by Rishengchang, Pingyao's ticket agency industry developed rapidly, with as many as 22 agencies in its heyday, making it the center of China's financial industry for a time.

Pingyao Ancient City is a well-preserved historical city and the prototype of ancient Chinese cities. With a total area of 2.25 square kilometers and 42,000 city dwellers to this day, the ancient city basically maintains its historical features from the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911 AD).

The ancient city of Pingyao was founded during the reign of King Xuan of the Western Zhou Dynasty (827-782 BC) and has a history of more than 2,700 years. Since 221 B.C., when the "county system" was introduced in China, Pingyao has been the seat of the "county government" and continues to be so to this day. It is the most basic level of China's cities. The ancient city wall is now preserved as it was when it was expanded in the third year of the Ming Dynasty (1370 A.D.), and the six major temple complexes, the county government office, the city building and other ancient buildings of the past dynasties are all the original objects in the city. There are more than 100 large and small streets and alleys in the city, which are still in their original historical forms, and the commercial stores on both sides of the streets are basically the buildings of the 17th-19th centuries. There are 3,797 traditional houses in the city, of which more than 400 have high preservation value and unique local style.

Unique and rich cultural relics The ancient city of Pingyao has a history of more than 2,700 years since its construction, and in the course of its long development, it has preserved a large number of cultural relics of high density and long span, making it a "cultural relics county" within the scope of Shanxi Province, which is known as "China's treasure trove of ancient architecture". It is one of the "big counties of cultural relics" in Shanxi Province, which is known as the "treasure house of Chinese ancient architecture". The numerous cultural relics of Pingyao Ancient City not only represent the architectural forms, construction methods and standards of materials used in ancient Chinese cities in different historical periods, but also reflect the artistic progress and aesthetic achievements of different ethnic groups and regions in ancient China.

Traditional Cultural Characteristics of the Han Chinese People The Ancient City of Pingyao was built in accordance with the traditional planning ideas and architectural styles of the Han Chinese people

, concentrating on the historical and cultural characteristics of the Han Chinese people around the 14th to 19th centuries A.D. It is an important reference value for the study of the social form, economic structure, military defense, religious beliefs, traditional ideas, ethics and morals of the forms of human habitation in this period. reference value.

Complete Ancient Dwelling Houses Since its reconstruction in the third year of the Ming Dynasty (1370 A.D.), the Ancient City of Pingyao has basically maintained its original pattern, which can be verified by documents and objects. The key residential buildings in Pingyao City were built between 1840 and 1911. The architectural layout of the residences is rigorous, with clear axes, left-right symmetry, clear-cut priorities, undulating contours, closed exteriors and deep courtyards. The exquisite wood carvings, brick carvings and stone carvings with heavy vernacular flavor of the paper-cutting window, subtle and lifelike, is by far the most well-preserved ancient residential communities in the Han ethnic areas.

Developed Financial City The ancient city of Pingyao was one of the most developed cities in the financial industry in the mid-to-late 19th century, home to the headquarters of the most influential contemporary ticket companies and the headquarters of the financial industry and the largest concentration of financial industry headquartered organizations. A time period. Once manipulated and controlled China's modern financial industry. The ancient city of Pingyao had a positive impact on China's modern economic development during the more than 100 years that the ticket companies flourished.