Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (Beijing, China) : Interior, pillars made from a single tree trunk; 12 red eave (outer) pillars and 12 gilded pillars; 4 pillars in the center are called Dragon Well Pillars

Creator:

Ming Shizong, Emperor of China, 1507-1566
Qianlong, Emperor of China, 1711-1799

Published/Created:

Southeastern part of central Beijing; Tiantan Rd. and Qinnian St., North Gate, Beijing, Beijing Shi, municipality, China
1545-1751 (inclusive); rebuilt ca. 1890 (other)

Physical Description:

38.2 m (height. including base); 24.2 m (diameter)

Date Depicted:

6/5/2009

Materials:

wood; paint; marble

Notes:

A magnificent triple-gabled circular building, built on a three-tiered marble stone base (6 m high), where the Emperor prayed for good harvests. Initially constructed in 1420 in a square design, it was reconstructed in 1545 during Emperor Jiajing's reign as a round building and reconstructed again in 1751 under Qianlong. At that time the roof tiles were redone all in blue. The building is completely wooden, with no nails used. The current building was rebuilt (still in the Ming style) several years after being burned down (caused by lightning) in 1889. The hall has four inner, twelve middle and twelve outer pillars, representing the four seasons, twelve months and twelve traditional Chinese hours (shíchén) respectively. Combined together, the twelve middle and twelve outer pillars represent the traditional solar term.

Variant Titles:

祈年殿

Topics:

Architecture -- China -- 15th century -- (YVRC)
Architecture -- China -- 16th century -- (YVRC)
Architecture -- China -- 18th century -- (YVRC)

Period/Style:

Ming dynasty, 1368-1644
Qing dynasty, 1644-1912

Culture:

Chinese

Accession Number:

1A2-CH-B-AH-A115

Genre:

architecture (AAT)
religious buildings: temples (AAT)

Format:

Image

Content Type:

Sculptures, Models, & Architecture

Rights:

Copyright Scott Gilchrist, Archivision, Inc
The use of this image may be subject to the copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) or to site license or other rights management terms and conditions. The person using the image is liable for any infringement.

Access Restrictions:

Yale Community Only

Digital:

buildings; religious buildings; temples

Source Creator:

Gilchrist, Scott

Source Title:

Archivision Addition Module Eight

Source Created:

2878 Chamonix, Montreal QC
Archivision, Inc.
6/5/2009 12:00:00 AM

Source Note:

Purchase, Visual Resources Collection, May, 2013; photographer Scott Gilchrist

Yale Collection:

Visual Resources Collection

Digital Collection:

Visual Resources Collection

Local Record Number:

4654

OID:

10899803

PID:

digcoll:1822800