We will look at some examples in the last section
in our discussion on Qing architecture.
In this section,
we will appreciate it in even greater depth.
There are many examples. I can only choose three out of them:
one on the design of the overall layout of a compound,
a second on the structural design of a stand-alone building,
and a final example on interior design.
We have to talk a bit more about an issue
with regards to the layout of Qing structures:
what units of measurement were used in designing their layouts?
One familiar unit from the past is the ren,
the character used in the line [of a poem] “A lone city in the midst of ten thousand ren of mountains.”
The ren corresponds to the height of a person and measures about eight chi.
The xun refers to the distance between a person’s outspread arms, which is also about eight chi.
If we take buwu (lit. “step five”) to mean the length of one step measuring five chi,
then this step of five chi seems too long.
Here, in fact, one step means to take a step with one foot
and a second step by bringing the other foot over, i.e., it is made of two smaller steps,
as in the saying, “One cannot reach the distance of a thousand li without putting one kui step ahead of the other.”
One bu step includes two kui steps.
So five chi equal the distance traveled by stepping forward twice.
So how long is a chi?
To put it in the context of the system of measurements that includes the zhang, chi, and cun:
one zhang equals ten chi, one chi is ten cun, and one cun is ten fen.
But in premodern China the length of a chi frequently changed.
Why was that? The reasons were quite complex.
First, the chi was not only used as a measure for construction and to determine the dimensions of structures;
it also had other functions.
For example,the astronomical chi was used
to take measurements in astronomy.
To make musical instruments,whether they were wind instruments,
or bowed or plucked string instruments, the musical chi was needed.
The astronomical chi and the musical chi have the same origin.
The two had gradually branched out through the years
to become a musical chi for measuring musical instruments,
this builder’s chi for architecture,
and an astronomical chi for astronomy.
This is the basic concept:
China, as an agricultural society,
used the millet plant as a measure of the chi, both in length
and in measuring a circumference.
A standard pipe was made based on these measurements,
and standard sounds could be made when the pipe resonated.
This was a feature of an agricultural society,
where the millet plant could be used in astronomy, music, and architecture.
When all was said and done, though, the length of the chi changed throughout history.
这个尺度长度是不一样的
But in the ninth year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong
the importance of the Qing Dynasty lies in the fact that
many things were collected, compiled,
and standardized in this period
in the ninth year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong, on a chance occasion,
the emperor finally decided that all measurements should be standardized and integrated into one system.
An interesting fact:
in the Purple Mountain Observatory in Nanjing, above the astronomical chi
he ordered the length of the Qing builder’s chi to be engraved.
As a result, the astronomical chi was no longer used in astronomical measurements.
The astronomical chi was very short because it was an ancient unit of measurement.
If you go back to ancient astronomical data,
the better chi was one that matched the one used in ancient times as closely as possible.
So the astronomical chi was generally kept short.
But in the Observatory, the Purple Mountain Observatory,
Emperor Qianlong ordered that the builder’s chi be engraved there,
and that the builder’s chi should be used to record astronomical data
like shadows cast by the sun and other phenomena —from that time onward.
This engraved chi, equal to 320 millimeters, was very precise.
While this chi had been used as a measure for astronomical data since then,
its basic function was as a measure in construction.
With this concept in mind, we now know that
if we want to get a sense of the the dimensions and proportions of Qing structures
after the ninth year of Emperor Qianlong’s reign,
the Qianlong builder’s chi can be used to answer many questions.
The first example that we will discuss today is Shoukang Palace in the Forbidden City.
Shoukang Palace was built for the empress dowager.
We can imagine in the beginning of his reign,
how many problems Emperor Qianlong had to tackle.
But the immediate construction issue
involved the residence of his own mother.
He had to ask her to leave the empress’s residence,part of the inner palaces,
and move to the empress dowager’s residence.
Emperor Qianlong, who especially loved and respected his mother,
was determined to build a palace for her.
Planning for the construction began in the thirteenth year of Emperor Yongzheng’s reign,
i.e.,at his death, and construction commenced in the first year of Emperor Qianlong’s reign.
Let’s take a look at this drawing of Shoukang Palace.
Shoukang Palace consists of a compound of buildings and courtyards,
and was built on lands to the east of Cining Palace.
Entering from the Huiyin right gate, there is a leading space in front of the palace,
the palace gate,
the main hall, the rear hall,
and the surrounding rooms along the corridors that form an enclosed space.
Of course, there are auxiliary halls in the front.
Controlling the layout of these structures
through their dimensions
was a problem faced by architects of the time.
To have been able to translate the emperor’s orders into the blueprint
and control the spaces appropriately,
they evidently had some guidance from prior generations.
This guidance was the methods that prior architects had used to design the layout of the grounds.
Our Mr. Fu Xinian has studied
the techniques used to design the layouts of large Chinese compounds.
There were two main representative techniques.
The first was using a grid to control the layout of a compound.
Large structures had ten-zhang grids,
smaller ones had five-zhang grids,
and even smaller structures used three-zhang grids.
No matter the size of the grid,
certain structures would correspond with the lines on the grid.
This was one of the main points.
Another focus
was the placement of the most important structure
in the compound on the grid layout.
We know that as soon as one entered a premodern Chinese compound,
there would be a large courtyard and also other courtyards in the back.
The front courtyards were more open,
and the back courtyards were more compact.
The basic method was to
draw diagonal lines in the grid
and get the geometric center.
Then, place the most important structure in the geometric center.
The portion of the compound in front of the most important structure was relatively open.
The rear structures stood more densely together and,
as a result, the rear portion of the compound was by comparison more compact.
This is a conclusion from our analysis of premodern [structures].
Taking it to the Qing Dynasty — did this method continue to be used in the Qing Dynasty?
We can use the chi that we estimated to be about 320 millimeters
of course, this chi was not used in the first year of Emperor Qianlong’s reign,
but it's length was close to the chi used at that time
using this builder’s chi to analyze the plan of Shoukang Palace.
We discover that
if we draw diagonal lines through the main courtyard of the palace,
then the main hall
is basically in the center of the courtyard,
with a small difference: it has been pushed a short distance forward.
To be more precise, the geometric center of this compound
lands squarely on the main hall’s rear eave column.
Let’s take a look at another drawing:
the geometric center of the compound
is on the rear eave column of the main hall in Shoukang Palace.
Putting the dimensions of Shoukang Palace in order,
and putting the dimensions of the rear hall in order,
the distance between the bays in the compound can be counted in units of several zhang.
There is yet another curiosity
that can be observed in Shoukang Palace:
after the three-zhang grid has been mapped out,
you will see that the rooms on the surrounding covered walkways and corridors
according to the records,
are one zhang and five chi deep, which is exactly half the length of the grid.
One zhang and five chi occupies precisely three sides of this grid system.
Inside the glazed glass gate at the entrance of the palace, there is a screen wall.
It is at a distance of exactly one zhang and five chi
from the glazed glass gate.
That is to say, one lap in this half of the grid
ends exactly here.
A central point was located on this basis for placing the main hall,
which occupies several zhang to lead to the rear hall.
The front eave column of the rear auxiliary hall sits precisely on this line of the three-zhang grid.
This is the front eave column of the auxiliary hall, which protrudes slightly forward.
This way, the compound has a better sense of being enclosed.
This is one way by which
we can understand the design of Shoukang Palace’s layout:
by understanding the builder’s chi and measurements used in construction during the Qing
by on-site surveying and mapping,
and by replicating the grid method,
or pinge (lit. “flat square” ) method that was often used by the premodern Chinese.
The pinge method was a term that often appeared in Qing records.
If it is called “flat square,” then its height still has to be marked and controlled.
In any case, the layout of this compound is “just so with large courtyards.”
This example illustrates certain methods
for designing the layout of a compound during the Qianlong period.
It was basically traditional,
without significant leaps or breakthroughs.