China is one of the four ancient countries with a long history and splendid culture. The tangible historical artifacts left by the passage of time are warm and touching.
Today, I bring you the top ten historical sites in China. Without further ado, let's get down to business.
Shaolin Temple is located at the foot of Wuniu Peak of Songshan Mountain in Zhengzhou City, Henan Province. Because it is located in the dense jungle of Shaomuro Mountain, the hinterland of Song Mountain, it is called Shaolin Temple. The Shaolin Temple was founded in the nineteenth year of the Northern Wei dynasty. It was built by Emperor Xiaowen at the northern foot of Shaomuro Mountain on Songshan Mountain, opposite the capital Luoyang, in order to install the highly respected Indian monk Batuo. Shaolin Temple is often hospitalized and covers an area of about 57,600 square meters. The current abbot is Yongxin, the 33rd Generation Fourth-Ancestor of the 47th Division of Cao Dong. Shaolin Temple is a world-famous Buddhist temple that was handed down from the Han Dynasty. The Zen ancestral court occupies an important position in the history of Chinese Buddhism and is known as the first temple under heaven. It is famous for the pioneering works of Shaolin monks and the continuous development of Shaolin Kung Fu, and is known as "the first in Shaolin in the world".
Qufu's famous ancient city and Sankong tourist area are world cultural heritage sites and one of the world's three holy cities. It is also one of the three ancient buildings in China based on the Qufu Confucius Temple, Confucius Mansion and Konglin. The 4th century Confucius Temple is an existing ancient complex in China, second only to the Forbidden City, and is a model of large-scale temple architecture in ancient China. Confucius Mansion, the residence of the descendants of Confucius, is adjacent to the Confucius Temple of the Western Regions, covering an area of about 16 hectares. After being repaired during the Ming Jiajing period, it became the residence of the nobility second only to the Forbidden City in China, and was known as the first in the world. Kong Lin is the burial ground of Confucius and his descendants, with more than 100,000 graves covering an area of more than 3,000 acres. It is the largest, longest-lasting and best-preserved clan tomb and artificial garden in China, and is also a natural botanical garden. With its rich cultural accumulation, long history, rich cultural relics collection and scientific and artistic value, Sankong Scenic Area attracts scholars from all over the world to worship.
Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, commonly known as the Thousand Buddha Caves, are located in Dunhuang at the western end of the Hexi Corridor. Built in the pre-Qin period of the Sixteen Kingdoms, it is one of the four famous caves in China and the world's largest and best-preserved treasure trove of Buddhist art. The Mogao Grottoes are more than 1,600 meters long from north to south, arranged in five layers, staggered, and resembling a beehive. There are 735 caves, 45,000 square meters of murals and 2,415 color sculptures. The Mogao Grottoes are divided into two areas, the southern area is the place of Buddhist rituals, and the northern area is the place where monks practice and live. In 1900, the Mogao Grottoes stumbled upon a cave containing 560,000 cultural relics from the 4th to 14th centuries AD. This was a major archaeological discovery in China at the beginning of the 20th century that shocked the world.
Located in the western suburbs of Datong City, Shanxi Province, China, the Yungang Grottoes represent the preeminent Buddhist cave art of China from the 5th to the 6th centuries AD. Among them, the layout and design of the five caves of Tan Yao are rigorous and unified, and are classic masterpieces of Chinese Buddhist art at its first peak. The cave was hewn in the second year of the Northern Wei dynasty. The grotto is carved along the mountain, about one kilometer between the east and west. It is imposing and informative. There are 45 main caves, 252 caves and niches, more than 51,000 stone carvings, the largest of which is 17 meters and the smallest is only a few centimeters. The images of bodhisattvas, rocks, and sorrowful heavens in the caves are vivid and lively, and the carvings on the pagoda are exquisite, which has become a realistic art in the Qin and Han periods. In essence, it pioneered Sui and Tang romanticism. Together with the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes in Gansu and the Longmen Grottoes in Henan, it is also one of the world-famous treasures of stone carving art.
Chengde Mountain Resort. Also known as Rehe Palace, it is the Summer Palace of the Qing Dynasty, located in Hebei Province, built between 1703 and 1792. It is a huge complex consisting of many palaces and other buildings that handle government affairs and ceremonies. Temples and otaku with different architectural styles blend seamlessly with the surrounding lakes, pastures, and forests. The summer resort not only has high aesthetic research value, but also preserves rare historical relics at the end of feudal society on the mainland. The summer resort is mainly divided into two parts: the palace area and the courtyard area. The palace area is located to the south of the villa, with many public buildings and a rigorous layout, which is the epitome of the Forbidden City. Wish the scenic spot. It is divided into lake area, plain area and mountain area. Chengde Mountain Resort takes advantage of the natural terrain, follows the way of nature, and integrates the essence of the art of gardening from north to south, which is a glorious milestone in the history of Chinese gardens.
Longmen Grottoes are located between the eastern and western cliffs of Longmen Gorge in Luoyang City, Henan Province, China. Because the east and west mountains are opposite each other, Yishui flows through it, resembling a gate, so it is also called a must. After the Tang Dynasty, it was often called the Dragon Gate. Located in the transportation hub, with beautiful scenery and pleasant climate, it is a sacred place for literati and inkers to visit. Because the rock mass where the Longmen Grottoes are located is of excellent stone quality and suitable for carving, the ancients chose to dig grottoes here. Longmen Grottoes, Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes in Gansu Province and Yungang Grottoes in Datong in Shanxi are known as the three treasures of Chinese stone carving art. The history of the grottoes was carved into Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei and took more than 400 years to build. It's 1,500 years old. Longmen Grottoes are about one kilometer long from north to south. There are more than 1,300 grottoes, 2,345 storage niches, more than 3,600 inscriptions, more than 50 stupas, and more than 97,000 Buddha statues, among which Yangbingzhong Cave, Fengxian Temple and Guyang Cave are the most representative. Longmen Grottoes also preserves a large number of historical materials of religion, art, calligraphy, music, clothing, medicine, architecture, transportation and other aspects at home and abroad, so it is also a large stone sculpture art museum.
The Potala Palace is located on Maburi Mountain in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. The Potala Palace is known as the pearl on the roof of the world. Its palace layout, civil engineering, metal smelting, painting and sculpture are all world-famous, epitomizing the superb skills of Han, Mongolian, Manchu and other ethnic craftsmen and the great achievements of Tibetan architectural art, and the Potala Palace was built in the soil. During the 32nd Zampu Songtseng Gampo period of the dynasty, then called Red Mountain Gully, it gradually died out with the decline of the Tubo Dynasty. In the 17th century, the warrior Dalai Lama rebuilt a magnificent palace called the Potala Palace on the site of the Red Mountain Palace. Since then, it has been the political and religious center of Tibet. The Potala Palace is huge and magnificent. It is built on a mountain town and covers an area of more than 360,000 square meters. The main building has 13 floors and is 117 meters high. The main buildings of Potala Palace include the White House, the Red Palace, and various buildings around it. The White House is where the Dalai Lama exercises political and religious administration. The building sits north facing south and has seven floors. Gonghong Palace is located in the middle of the Potala Palace and has six floors. It is a place for enshrinement of the Dalai Lama's spiritual pagoda and various religious activities.
The Tombs of the Thirteen Tombs is the general name of the tombs of 13 emperors after the Ming Dynasty moved the capital to Beijing. They are located at the southern foot of Tianshou Mountain, northwest of Beijing, and the mausoleum covers an area of more than 40 square kilometers. They are the tombs of Chinese emperors of the Ming Dynasty. The area has beautiful natural scenery and a wealth of cultural monuments. From the opening of the museum in May of the seventh year of Yongle to the burial of the Chongzhen Emperor, it lasted more than 230 years. There are 13 Ming emperors, 23 Ming empresses, 2 Ming princes, more than 30 concubines and 1 eunuch, which are large in scale, complete in system and relatively complete in preservation. This is one of the best-preserved mausoleums in the world. The natural environment of the Ming Tombs is characterized by green mountains, open halls, flowing water, and all forests are built on the mountains and surrounded by mountains. Compared with the mausoleums built on the plains, the natural landscape is more pleasing to the eye and can better express the solemnity, solemnity and grandeur of the imperial mausoleum.
Qin Shi Huang, who ruled the country around 220 BC, connected some of the intermittent fortifications he had built earlier into a complete defensive system to defend against invasion from the north. Since Qin Shi Huang, almost all dynasties that ruled the Central Plains have built the Great Wall, including Han, Jin, Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, Western Wei, Northern Qi, Northern Zhou, Sui, Tang, Song, Liao, Jin, Yuan, Ming, and Qing. From the 7th and 8th centuries BC, it was continuously built for more than 2,000 years, distributed in the vast land of northern and central China, with a total length of 21,196.18 kilometers, more than 2,000 years above and below, and more than 100,000 li in length. Such a huge project is unique not only in China, but also in the world. Its cultural and artistic value is enough to match its historical and strategic value. This is the greatest construction project in the history of human civilization. They once lived in the underground world, engulfed in darkness for more than 2,200 years, until a light in 1974 illuminated them and surprised the world. However, the dazzling colors disappeared in the magic of the underground years and the accelerated aging after excavation, leaving only an earthy yellow army of more than 8,000 life-size users, known as the Terracotta Army of the First Emperor of Qin.
The shaping of the Terracotta Army is basically based on real life, and the techniques are delicate and vivid. Each terracotta figurine has a different costume and etiquette. There are many types of hair accessories, different postures, and different facial expressions. From their clothing, expressions, ornaments, we can tell whether a sergeant is a soldier, infantryman, or cavalryman. In general, the faces of all terracotta warriors reveal the peculiar strength of lovers. The text is calm, the personality is distinct, and the characteristics of the era are strong. Terracotta sculpture is a combination of painting and plastic. Although it has a long history, when it was first excavated, the colors on people's faces and clothes were still faintly visible. Pay attention to the hull in terms of technique, the composition is ingenious, the technique is flexible, it is both authentic and not decorative. Because of this, the Qin Terracotta Army occupies an important place in the history of Chinese sculpture. Judging by the more than 1,000 terracotta figurines unearthed, there are few similarities. Known as the eighth wonder of the world, the Terracotta Army of the First Emperor of Qin is a golden business card of the splendid civilization of ancient China.