On the 30th May 2022 on continuing the topic of “beauty” today, the editor will find the exquisite and beautiful “Linghua” in the windows of the 602 year old Forbidden City together with you…… Beijing – China – People’s Republic of China- at the Forbidden City in which The weather has reached over 30 degrees in the past few days, everyone must be prepared to prevent heatstroke and cool down
Last week, I explored the beautiful colours in the Forbidden City with you. Today, I will continue the topic of “beauty”. The editor will find the exquisite and beautiful “Linghua” in the windows of the Forbidden City with you….
Speaking of windows, its history can be traced back to primitive society. At that time, human beings lived in cave dwellings or semi-cave dwellings, with an opening at the top of the dwelling to meet the needs of lighting. With the passage of time, the window began to form as a house structure. During the Yin and Zhou Dynasties, there were cross-grid windows. In the Warring States period, the cross-grid had new changes, and slanted grid windows appeared at the same time. In the Han Dynasty, the form of windows has been greatly developed, and there are square, rectangular, and circular and so on. Not only that, there are also mullioned windows and lock windows.
During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, mullioned windows began to occupy the main advantage, and in the Song Dynasty, doors and windows with a rich combination of mullioned strips became popular. Such doors and windows can not only be opened, but also improve indoor lighting and ventilation conditions, which is really convenient. After the Yuan Dynasty, sash windows that could not be opened were rare. Although there were still mullioned windows in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, they were generally no longer used in main buildings. At this time, the types and forms of windows have been greatly developed. The most common forms are the diamond window and the branch window.
In fact, the forms of windows can be said to be various in ancient Chinese architecture. If they are divided into sill windows, horizontal windows, transparent windows, elephant eye windows, wind windows, and transom windows according to their positions, there are also the above-mentioned windows. There are also various windows, such as wood windows, brick windows, stone windows, iron windows, etc., as well as real windows and fake windows by function. (blind window). It’s really diverse, and the editor feels a little dizzy….
Although there are so many different windows, it is not complicated to subdivide them: For example, sill windows are used on the top of the sill wall, and the transversal windows are used on the partitions and sill windows. The most common diamond window is actually a kind of sill window. The window is a switch fan, and the heart is made of a diamond pattern. You can really tell the style from the name. The three-cross and six-bowl and double-cross four-bowl mentioned above are the two main styles of the diamond window. Among them, there are also There are different patterns. Most of the palaces in the Forbidden City use rhombus windows. Of course, in addition to the rhombus windows, there are also branch-pick windows, which are also a type of sill windows: the windows are two layers inside and outside, divided into upper and lower sections. The upper section of the outer layer can be branched upwards. The lower part can be taken off, and the panes are carved with various patterns~ It is really full of various ingenious designs~
I believe that many readers are not unfamiliar with “three crosses and six bowls of Linghua”, so what kind of expression is this kind of door and window decoration? It is actually made up of three lattices that are crossed and connected, and the intersection is fixed with bamboo or wooden pegs and decorated into a flower center. In the orthogonal method, each included angle is 60 degrees, and in the oblique method, the median line intersects at 30 degrees. It can form various patterns such as circles, diamonds, triangles, etc., and can also be changed into balls composed of turtle back brocade lines, round lines, and petal lines. Patterned rhombus, turtle-backed brocade raspberry, six-bowl with gypsophila and mugwort raspberry, etc., are very rich in forms and are high-level forms in the decoration of ancient buildings. Most of the palaces in the Forbidden City use diamond-shaped windows, and they also use changes in form to avoid repetition. Thinking about it, I feel that the design of these doors and windows is elegant and full of whimsy…..
Imagines credits are of the Forbidden City –Imperial Palace –Beijing – China- People’s Republic of China also from the Series Weibo北京卫视上新了故宫 Treasures in the Forbidden City…
