This book presents a lecture on the history of ancient Chinese architecture, which was offered by Chinese archaeologist Bai SU for students of archaeology at Peking University. It first introduces readers to the site of the late Yangshao Culture ca. 5,000 years ago, the earliest ground architecture in China. Then, it discusses the representative architecture of each era, from the Shang and Zhou Dynasties to the Ming and Qing Dynasties, including its essential characteristics and characteristics of the times, and clarifies the development of Chinese architecture. Approaching ancient Chinese architecture from an innovative perspective and providing a research method for assessing the development of Chinese archaeology from an architectural standpoint, the book includes a wealth of photographs and hand-drawn drawings accumulated over SUs years of research, offering an invaluable resource for readers seeking to understand the characteristics of ancient Chinese architecture.
Introduction.- Architecture before and during the shang and zhou
dynasties.- Architecture during the warring states period and the han
dynasty.- Architecture of the wei jin southern and northern dynasties.-
Architecture of the sui tang and five dynasties period.- Architectural
developments during the liao song jin and yuan dynasties.- Architecture of
the ming and qing dynasties.- Conclusion.
Bai SU (1922-2018) became a professor at the History Department of Peking University in 1978. In 1983, he was appointed director of the Department of Archaeology at Peking University. The same year, he served as a member of the National Heritage Committee of the Ministry of Culture. In 1999, he was elected honorary president of the Chinese Society of Archaeology. Su repeatedly oversaw Peking Universitys archaeological practices concerning grotto temple ruins and was involved in the surveying and mapping, recording, and research on significant grottoes throughout China. In 1959, he also participated in the investigation of Tibetan cultural relics. Moreover, Su employed typological methods to conduct a comprehensive regional and chronological study of tombs from the We-Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties through the Sui and Tang periods, thereby laying the foundation for research on the evolution of burial systems, hierarchical structures, and social change during these historical eras.
Tsai Shangrong holds a Ph.D. in Cultural Heritage from the University of Birmingham, UK. Furthermore, with extensive experience in academia and the design industry, her research interests encompass intangible cultural heritage, cultural creativity, and cultural tourism. Her work integrates heritage with contemporary design and digital applications to promote cultural sustainability and innovative education. Dr. Tsai has led numerous projects, including the Chinese Academic Translation Project funded by the National Social Science Foundation, the Industry-University Cooperative Education Project sponsored by Chinas Ministry of Education, and various provincial and corporate design initiatives. Her contributions have significantly advanced interdisciplinary research and practice in cultural heritage preservation, creative design, and digital innovation.
