Chinese architecture

Japanese: 中国建築 - ちゅうごくけんちく

Chinese civilization not only has ancient origins, but has also been developed and passed down without interruption throughout a historical period spanning more than 3,000 years. In this respect, it is considered a miracle in world history, and the traditions of Chinese architecture also clearly reflect these characteristics, occupying a unique place in the history of world architecture.

[Tanaka Tan]

Ancient Dynasty Architecture

The earliest date that can be confirmed from written records is the establishment of the Shang dynasty in the 16th century BCE, but when it comes to the architecture of ancient dynasties, all that has been known so far has been a few names from the oracle bone inscriptions of the Shang dynasty and the ancient Chinese inscriptions of the Zhou dynasty, as well as legendary descriptions from later documents such as "In ancient times, people lived in caves and lived in the fields. In later times, sages would use them to build palaces" (Book of Changes) or vague, fragmentary descriptions such as "The royal chambers of the Xia Queen, the heavy houses of the Shang people, and the Ming Halls of the Zhou people" (Kaogongji). However, recent archaeological findings have led to the discovery of castle ruins dating back to the Xia Dynasty, which was considered a legendary dynasty, and excavations have uncovered city walls and palaces from the early to mid-Shang dynasty, an ancestral temple from the Western Zhou period, and an ancestral temple, palaces, and mausoleums from the Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Period. From the Han dynasty onwards, specific styles and techniques can be inferred to a certain extent thanks to abundant written historical materials, images, and Ming wares, and coupled with the emergence of these new materials, we are finally at the stage where we are able to clarify the circumstances under which Chinese architecture has continued to develop throughout its long history, from the very early period of antiquity to modern times.

The fact that Chinese architecture reached a highly advanced and original technical level very early on is clear from the large number of wooden components and remains excavated in recent years from the Hemudu ruins in Zhejiang Province. The pillars, joists, floorboards and other excavated components, determined by carbon-14 techniques to be 6,000 to 7,000 years old, have intricate tenons and tenon holes, indicating that the technology for wooden raised-floor construction using joints had already been developed. The Hemudu culture was an advanced civilization at the time, with rice cultivation techniques, and since many of the Neolithic dwelling sites in North China and the Central Plains are pit dwellings, this means that a completely different lineage existed in terms of architectural technology, but the fact that this type of advanced civilization flourished in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River is highly noteworthy when considering the formation of China's unique architectural traditions in later historical periods. The palace sites of Yanshi, Henan Province, and Panlongcheng, Hubei Province, during the Shang Dynasty, are surrounded by heavy walls of rammed earth, and are of a style in which these box-shaped earthen walls are the main structural structure. Similar examples of thick earthen walls as the main structure were inherited all the way back to the Spring and Autumn period, at the site of an ancestral temple in Fengxiang, Shaanxi Province, Yongcheng, Qin State. It is also known that during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, a unique style of multi-story architecture was popular, in which a stepped pyramid-style earthen platform was built, with wooden buildings surrounding each layer on all four sides. Examples of a style similar to the daixie can also be found at the sites of palaces and altars in Shaanxi Province during the Qin and Han periods. In other words, it appears that architecture from earlier periods in the Central Plains region was dominated by a system in which earth was the main structure.

[Tanaka Tan]

Wooden building tradition

As far as we know from documents, images, and Ming Dynasty documents, there is little doubt that architecture based on wooden structures, which continues to this day, was established at the latest during the Warring States period, and that it has dominated since the Han dynasty. Even when we look at the ancient architecture that remains today, wooden architecture is overwhelmingly the mainstream. Looking at it from a technical standpoint, it is a structure that makes full use of materials such as pillars, beams, ten (rafters), rin (ridgepole), and tokyo (pillar brackets), which are joined together with handles and handle holes and layered one on top of the other to form a structure, which is nothing less than the prototype for Japanese palace and shrine architecture. The distinctive feature of this structure is clearly reflected in the notation for the number of bays (ken), which indicates the size of a building by counting the number of bays in the front and the number of bays in the depth direction (e.g., 5-ken-9-ka, 3-ken-5-ka, etc.). In other words, this method is only possible on the premise that the standard beam-to-beam structural unit is repeated many times, and it has excellent consistency. In this case, the wooden structural frame is surrounded by thick piled-up bricks and earthen walls to cover the exterior, giving the building an appearance that is significantly different from Japanese architecture, but these surrounding walls are not actually expected to provide structural strength, and the main focus is on the wooden structural frame. There is a Chinese proverb that says, "Even if the walls collapse, the house will not fall," which is a good description of the structural principles of such houses.

The tradition of wooden architecture unique to China, which mixes wood and earth in this way, was probably formed gradually through the fusion of a system of structures that primarily used earthen walls, which had been cultivated in the North and Central Plains regions of China during the pre-Qin period, and a system of purely wooden raised-floor architecture that developed from an early period in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and in South and Southwest China. At the site of an ancestral temple from the Western Zhou period in the Zhouyuan region of Shaanxi Province, which was excavated recently, a plan with neatly arranged pillars was discovered, and this is thought to be an early emergence of a fusion of both systems, of mixed earth and wood construction.

Although the heroic figures of Chinese architecture, which has its origins in ancient times and has given birth to its own unique traditions, are recorded in a vast amount of historical documents, the finest architecture in history, such as the front hall of the Epang Palace of the First Emperor of Qin, the Weiyang Palace and the Jianzhang Palace of Emperor Wu of the Han, the Qianyuan Palace in Luoyang of Emperor Yang of the Sui, and the Daming Palace in Chang'an during the Tang Dynasty, have all been lost and almost nothing remains to this day. This is, so to speak, the natural result of the tumultuous history of this country, which has seen repeated wars, changes of dynasties, and the abolition of Buddhism. Among the wooden remains that still exist, there are four or five buildings from the Tang dynasty, such as the Great Hall of Nanzenji Temple (Wutai, Shanxi Province, 782) and the Great Hall of Foguangji Temple (same address, 857). In addition, representative of the relatively old category are the Kannon Pavilion of Dorakuji Temple (Jixian, Tianjin City, 984), the Mani Hall of Longxing Temple (Zhengding, Hebei Province, 1052), and the Sheng Mu Hall of Jinci (Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, 1102). Most are Buddhist temples, Taoist temples, and shrines such as Confucius temples, but there are also some that date back to before the Song and Yuan dynasties in various places, and many of them are masterpieces. Furthermore, palaces and altars that are comparable in scale and traditional styles to famous historical architecture, although they are from more recent times, still survive, including the entire inner wall of the Forbidden City in Beijing, which was the palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties, including the Taihe Hall and Qianqing Palace. The Temple of Heaven in Beijing also retains relics of ancient times, and the Confucius Temple in Qufu, Shandong Province, conveys its entire appearance as it was when rebuilt during the Ming dynasty.

When we look at the detailed techniques of these wooden buildings, such as the curved eaves, the bracket style, the use of ko (tail rafters), the tapered curve of the pillars, the moulded patterns on the lintels, and the types of painted patterns, we can see that they have clear stylistic characteristics that correspond to each period of the Tang, Song, Liao, Jin, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties.Even the style of the wooden frame, while essentially maintaining the space frame style, has changed slightly depending on the period, dynasty, and region.For example, the eaves were not so sharp before the Song dynasty, but during the Ming and Qing dynasties, especially in the Jiangnan region, a sharply inverted curve was preferred. Before the Han dynasty, dougongs were based on a simple double dou style, but gradually san dou, double dou (elbow brackets) and ang were used in combination, and in the Tang dynasty, one or more sets of reinforcing dougongs were placed between the pillars, which became the standard style during the Song and Yuan dynasties, and became even simpler during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Wooden structural frames followed the principle of erecting pillars at the intersections of an orderly lattice plan, but in the Jin and Yuan dynasties, irregular structures were also used in which the number of pillars was greatly reduced in order to make the most of the space. These various changes in the components are nothing but indicators that clearly distinguish the architectural styles of each era.

[Tanaka Tan]

Brick and stone structures

Meanwhile, architecture made of bricks, walls (sun-dried bricks), mulched earth, stone, and other structural materials also continued and developed. A typical example of this is the mausoleum. During the Warring States period, large wooden coffin pit tombs were used, but during the Han dynasty, bricks were stacked in an arch shape, raised to a dome shape to build the top of the tomb chamber, and the top of the tomb passage was made in a vault (semi-cylindrical) style. Brick arches and stone masonry became typical of tomb chamber structures in northern and central China after the Han dynasty, and remains are widely distributed throughout the country. Arch and dome structures are different in style from those in Western Asia and Rome, and continued to develop uniquely in China, developing the world's most advanced arch bridge technology of the time, such as the Anji Bridge (Zhao County, Hebei Province, 605-617) during the Sui dynasty. Above ground, brick and stone architecture includes gates built in front of tombs, and remains from the Han dynasty remain in Henan and Sichuan provinces. Most Buddhist pagodas are brick or stone, with only a few wooden ones such as the Buddha Temple Shaka Pagoda (Yingxian, Shanxi Province, Liao Dynasty, 1056). There are many excellent examples in various regions, including the oldest brick pagoda, Songyue Temple Pagoda (Dengfeng, Henan Province, Northern Wei Dynasty, 523), the White Pagoda of Miaoying Temple (Beijing, Yuan Dynasty, 1271), and the stone pagodas, such as the Four Gates Pagoda of Shentong Temple (Liubu, Shandong Province, Eastern Wei Dynasty, 544) and the Qixia Temple Relic Pagoda (Nanjing, Five Dynasties, 959). Other examples include the domes and minarets of Islamic temples, as well as a style of building called a "beamless hall" that was popular during the Ming dynasty and has a brick vault with an exterior that imitates a wooden structure.

[Tanaka Tan]

Characteristics of Chinese architecture

Chinese architecture not only achieved a high level of technology early on, but also used mainly wood, brick, stone, and earth in its construction, and was classified into castles, palaces, altars, tombs, Buddhist temples, stone caves, Taoist temples, Lama shrines, Islamic temples, government offices, private shrines, and homes, and sometimes even Christianity, Zoroastrianism, and Manichaeism. It came into contact with many different ethnic cultures and showed a diverse range of developments. Nevertheless, looking at its history from a broad perspective, one of its major characteristics is that it was governed by certain principles regardless of era, dynasty, or type. For example, when the capital was built, from the Spring and Autumn Period to the Warring States Period and the Ming and Qing Periods, it was generally planned based on the basic principle of a double castle system, with the "cheng" being the inner castle and the "ku" being the outer castle and the people's residential area, and it was assumed that the defenses would be strong. Even in the case of individual buildings, the main focus was to surround the entire group of buildings with a surrounding wall, forming a closed enclosure, rather than treating them as individual buildings. A typical example is the "Siheyuan", the most common traditional style of Chinese housing, in which houses arranged to the east, west, north and south surround a courtyard, which is repeated multiple times in the north-south direction to form a group of deep, multi-layered courtyards. This type of symmetrical, deep, closed courtyard configuration is also common to Buddhist temples in the Tang and Song dynasties, and the Forbidden City and Confucius Temples of the Ming and Qing dynasties, and has a tradition that dates back as far as the site of the ancestral temple in the Western Zhou period.

The background to the establishment of such unchanging principles is related to the history of China's unique bureaucracy. Government-run projects such as palaces, castles, altars, and mausoleums have continued to dominate the history of Chinese architecture, because they were supported by a bureaucrat-led, so to speak, controlled view of architecture. The "Yingzaofashi" (Instructions for Construction), compiled by the General Construction Supervisor Li Jie at the imperial command of Emperor Huizong during the Northern Song Dynasty, is a large architectural technical book with rare detailed content in the world, but its main purpose was to economically control such government-run construction works. The book classifies buildings into eight grades, and specifies detailed design standards for each grade, including the dimensions of each component, decoration, color, and pattern, and also provides cost estimation standards. However, this view of the grades for this type of architecture is actually based on nothing other than the ancient traditions of Confucianism. Although architecture is, of course, deeply connected to social systems, the history of Chinese architecture in particular can be said to reflect many aspects of the country's complex and profound history.

[Tanaka Tan]

"History of Chinese Architecture, translated and edited by Tanaka Tan (1981, Heibonsha)" ▽ "Chinese Architecture, supervised by Tang Jiango and Tanaka Tan, translated by Suefusa Yumiko (1982, Shogakukan)" ▽ "New Edition: Cultural Historical Sites of the World 17: Ancient Chinese Architecture, edited by Murata Jiro and Tanaka Tan (1980, Kodansha)"

Forbidden City Taihe Hall
The main hall of the outer court of the Forbidden City. It is the largest wooden building in China. It is built on a three-story white marble platform, measuring approximately 60m east to west and 33m north to south. It was built in 1420, but was burned down and rebuilt several times, and the current building was rebuilt in 1695. Part of the World Heritage Site "Imperial Palaces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties in Beijing and Shenyang" (China, registered in 1987 and 2004) Beijing, China ©Shogakukan ">

Forbidden City Taihe Hall

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

中国文明はきわめて古い始源をもつだけでなく、3000年以上に及ぶ歴史時代を通じて、とだえることなく発展継承されてきた。その点において世界史の奇跡とされるが、中国建築の伝統もまたそうした特色を明確に反映し、世界の建築史上に独自の位置を占めている。

［田中　淡］

古代王朝の建築

漢民族によって開花した中国文明の年代が、文字記録により確認できるのは紀元前16世紀、殷(いん)王朝の成立であるが、古代王朝の建築については、従来、殷代甲骨文や周(しゅう)代金文の若干の名称のほか、時代の下る文献の「上古は穴居して野処(やしょ)す。後世聖人之(これ)に易(か)うるに宮室を以(も)ってす」（『易経』）のような伝説的記述や、「夏(か)后氏世室、殷人重屋、周人明堂」（『考工記』）といった不明瞭(ふめいりょう)な断片的記載しかなかった。ところが近年の考古学の成果により、伝説的な王朝とされていた夏王朝の年代に相当する城址(じょうし)が発見され、殷代の初期から中期の城壁や宮殿、西周時代の宗廟(そうびょう)、春秋戦国時代の宗廟、宮室、陵墓などの遺跡が次々と発掘された。漢代以降は豊富な文献史料と画像や明器(めいき)などによって具体的な様式・技術もある程度推定することができるので、これら新資料の出現と相まって、古代のきわめて早い時期から近代に至るまで、中国建築が悠久な歴史を不断に持続発展してきた情況が、ようやく明らかにされつつある段階である。

　中国建築がきわめて早くから独創性に富む高度な技術的水準に到達していたことは、近年、浙江(せっこう／チョーチヤン)省河姆渡(かぼと)の遺跡から出土した大量の木造部材と遺構の残欠をみれば明瞭である。炭素14法による判定で6000～7000年前とされる柱、根太梁(ねだはり)、床板などの出土部材には精巧な柄(ほぞ)・柄穴が加工され、すでに仕口(しぐち)の結合を用いた木造高床(たかゆか)建築の技術が開発されていたことを物語る。河姆渡文化は稲作技術を伴う当時先進的な文明であり、華北・中原(ちゅうげん)の新石器時代の住居址は多く竪穴(たてあな)式の穴居であるから、建築技術的にはまったく異質の系統が存在したことになるが、揚子江(ようすこう／ヤンツーチヤン)下流域にこの種の先進文明が開花したという事実は、後の歴史時代の中国固有の建築的伝統の形成を考えるうえで大いに注目に値しよう。殷代の河南(かなん／ホーナン)省偃師(えんし)、湖北(こほく／フーペイ)省盤竜城(ばんりゅうじょう)の宮殿址は、四周に重厚な夯土(こうど)（つき固めた土）の壁を巡らし、この箱型の土壁を主要な構造体とする形式である。同趣の分厚い夯土の壁体を主たる構造とする例は、下って春秋時代、秦(しん)国雍城の陝西(せんせい／シャンシー)省鳳翔(ほうしょう)の宗廟址にまで継承されている。また春秋戦国時代には、「台榭(だいしゃ)」とよばれる夯土の基壇を段状ピラミッド式に築き、その各層四周に木造の建築を巡らした独特な重層建築の形式が盛行したことが知られる。台榭と同種の形式は、秦・漢時代の陝西省の宮殿・壇廟址にも受け継がれている例がある。すなわち、中原地方におけるより古い時代の建築は、土を主要な構造とする系統が主流であったとみられる。

［田中　淡］

木造建築の伝統

文献や画像、明器などから知られる限りでは、遅くとも戦国時代には、今日に連なる木造の構架を主体とする建築が確立し、それが漢代以降、厳然たる主流の地位を占めていたことは、ほとんど疑う余地がない。現在残っている古建築をとってみても、木造建築が圧倒的に主流を占めている。それを技術的にみると、柱、梁、椽(てん)（垂木(たるき)）、(りん)（棟木(むなぎ)）、斗栱(ときょう)（柱上の組物）などの部材を駆使し、相互を柄・柄穴で結合させながら、順次組み重ねて構架を形成するものであり、これは日本の宮殿・社寺建築に原型を与えたものにほかならない。この構造の特色は、正面の柱間(はしらま)数を間(けん)、奥行方向の梁組み構架の数を架(か)で数えて建物の規模を表す間架の表記法（五間九架、三間五架など）に如実に現れている。つまり、基準となる梁間方向の構架の単位を何度も繰り返すという前提があって初めて成立しうる方式で、整合性に優れる。この場合、木造構架の周囲には分厚い塼(せん)（れんが）や土の壁が積み重ねられて外表を覆うために、外見的には日本建築とは著しく異なる印象を与えるが、この周壁は、実は構造上の耐力を期待されているものではなく、主体はあくまで木造構架にある。中国に「墻(かべ)倒るとも屋塌(お)ちず」という諺(ことわざ)があるが、これはそうした家屋の構造原理をよく言い当てたものといえる。

　このような形で木と土とを混用する中国固有の木造建築の伝統は、おそらく先秦時代に華北・中原地方ではぐくまれてきた土壁を主要な構造とする系統と、揚子江中・下流域および華南・西南地方に早い時期から発達した純木造高床建築の系統との融合によって、しだいに形成されていったものであろう。近年発掘された陝西省周原地区の西周時代の宗廟址に、柱位置を整然と配列した平面が検出されたのは、両者の系統を融合した、土・木混造の初期における萌芽(ほうが)とみられる。

　悠遠な源流をもち、独自の伝統を生み出した中国建築の勇姿は、膨大な史書に伝えられているとはいえ、たとえば秦の始皇帝の阿房宮(あぼうきゅう)前殿、漢の武帝の未央宮(びおうきゅう)や建章宮、隋(ずい)の煬帝(ようだい)の洛陽(らくよう)乾元殿、唐代長安の大明宮(だいめいきゅう)など、歴史上に名だたる最高級の建築はいずれも失われ、今日に伝わるものはほとんどない。それは、たび重なる戦乱、王朝の交代、あるいは廃仏などを間断なく繰り返したこの国の激動の歴史が導いた、いわば当然の結果でもある。現存する木造遺構としては、南禅寺大殿（山西(さんせい／シャンシー)省五台、782）、仏光寺大殿（同上、857）など唐代のもの4、5棟があるほか、独楽寺観音閣（天津(てんしん／ティエンチン)市薊県(けいけん)、984）、隆興寺摩尼殿（河北(かほく／ホーペイ)省正定、1052）、晋祠(しんし)聖母殿（山西省太原(たいげん)、1102）などが比較的古い部類の代表的なものであり、ほとんどが仏教寺院および道観、孔子廟といった祠廟ではあるが、宋(そう)・元時代以前のものも各地に残り、秀作も少なくない。また歴史上の名建築に比肩しうる規模や伝統的形式を踏襲した宮殿・壇廟の類は、時代が下るとはいえ、明(みん)・清(しん)両王朝の宮殿であった北京(ペキン)の紫禁城（故宮）の内城の城郭・城門および太和殿・乾清宮などを含む全域が現存するし、同じく北京の天壇も古来の遺制をとどめており、山東(さんとう／シャントン)省曲阜(きょくふ)の孔子廟も明代再建時の全貌(ぜんぼう)を伝えている。

　これらの木造建築は、たとえば軒反りの曲線、斗栱の形式、昂(こう)（尾垂木(おだるき)）の用法、柱の上細り曲線、木鼻の繰形(くりかた)紋様、あるいは彩色紋様の類型など、細部的な手法をみると、唐・宋・遼(りょう)・金・元・明・清の各時代に応じた、明らかな様式的特徴をもっており、さらに木造構架の形式でさえ、原則的には間架形式を守りながらも、時代・王朝、あるいは地方によって若干の変化がある。たとえば、軒反りは宋代以前はそれほどきつくないが、明・清時代、とくに江南地方では急激な反転曲線が好まれた。斗栱は、漢代以前は単純な双斗形式が基本であったが、しだいに三斗、二重の栱（肘木(ひじき)）、昂を併用したものも現れ、唐代には柱と柱の中間にも一組以上の補強用の斗栱を置くようになり、宋・元時代にはそれが定型化し、明・清時代にはいっそう単純類型化された。木造構架は、整然とした格子（グリッド）平面の交点に柱を立てる原則を守ったが、金・元時代には空間を広く活用するために柱の本数を大幅に減じた変則的な構架も用いられた。このようなさまざまの構成要素の変化は、各時代の建築様式を明確に弁別する指標となるものにほかならない。

［田中　淡］

塼・石造の建造物

一方、塼（れんが）・墼(げき)（日干しれんが）・夯(こう)土・石などを構造材とする建築も存続し、発達した。その代表的な類型は陵墓である。戦国時代には大型の木槨(もっかく)土坑墓であったが、漢代には、塼をアーチ式に積み上げ、ドーム状にもち送って墓室頂部を築き、墓道頂部をボールト（半円筒形）式につくるものが圧倒的に多くなる。塼造アーチや石板の組積造は、漢代以降、華北・華中の墓室構造の典型となり、遺構も各地に広範に分布する。アーチ、ドームの構造は西アジアやローマの系統とは方式を異にするもので、その後も中国において独自の発展を遂げ、隋代の安済橋(あんさいきょう)（河北省趙(ちょう)県、605～617）のような、当時の世界における先進的なアーチ橋の技術をも開発した。地上の塼・石造建築としては、墓前に建てられた門闕(もんけつ)があり、河南・四川(しせん／スーチョワン)省などに漢代の遺構が残る。仏塔では、木塔は仏宮寺(ぶっきゅうじ)釈迦(しゃか)塔（山西省応県、遼、1056）などわずかしかなく、ほとんど塼塔・石塔である。塼塔では最古の遺構の嵩岳寺(すうがくじ)塔（河南省登封、北魏(ほくぎ)、523）や、ラマ塔の妙応寺白塔（北京、元、1271）、石塔では神通寺四門塔（山東省柳埠、東魏、544）や棲霞寺(せいかじ)舎利塔（南京(ナンキン)、五代、959）などのほか、各地に秀作が少なくない。このほか、イスラム教寺院のドームやミナレット、また明代に流行した塼造ボールトで外観は木造を模した無梁殿(むりょうでん)という形式もある。

［田中　淡］

中国建築の特色

中国建築は、高度な技術的水準に早くから到達しただけでなく、材料面では木造を主に塼・石・土も併用し、類型的には城郭・宮殿・壇廟・陵墓・仏寺・石窟(せっくつ)・道観・ラマ廟・イスラム教寺院・官署・民間祠廟・住宅、さらに、ときにはキリスト教・ゾロアスター教・マニ教などをも受け入れ、多くの異民族文化と接触し、多彩な展開をみせた。にもかかわらず、その歴史を大局的にみると、時代・王朝や類型種別にかかわらない、一定の原則性に支配されている点も一つの大きな特色となっている。たとえば、都城の建設の際は、春秋戦国時代から明・清時代に至るまで、一般に二重城郭制を基本理念として計画され、「城」が内城で君主の、「郭」が外城で人民の、それぞれ居住区であって、堅牢(けんろう)な守りを前提とした。個別の建築の場合も、一棟ごとの建物としてより、建築群全体を同様に周壁で取り囲み、閉鎖的な一郭を形成することを主眼とした。中国のもっとも普遍的な住居の伝統的形式「四合院(しごういん)」がその典型で、東西南北に配した家屋で中庭を取り囲み、それを南北方向に幾重にも繰り返して、奥行の深い重層的な中庭群を形成する。この種の左右対称で奥行の深い閉鎖的な中庭群の構成は、唐・宋時代の仏寺や明・清時代の紫禁城や孔子廟にも共通するもので、すでに遠く西周時代の宗廟址にさかのぼる伝統をもつ。

　こうした不変的な原則が確立しえた背景には、中国独特の官僚制の歴史がかかわっている。中国建築史の主流を歩み続けたのは、宮殿・城郭・壇廟・陵墓など官営の工程であり、それは官僚主導型のいわば統制的な建築観によって支えられたからである。北宋時代に徽宗(きそう)の勅命によって将作監の李誡(りかい)が編纂(へんさん)した『営造法式』は、世界でも希有(けう)の詳細な内容をもつ大部の建築技術書であるが、その主たる目的はそうした官営工事の経済的な統制であった。同書では建築を8等級に類別し、逐一の部材寸法や装飾・彩色紋様に至るまで、各等級に応じた詳細な設計基準が定められ、積算規準が示されているが、この種の建築に対する等級観も実は儒教の古い伝統に基づくものにほかならない。もとより建築は社会制度と深くかかわるものとはいえ、中国建築の歴史は、とりわけこの国の複雑で奥行の深い歴史の側面を随所に投影しているといえよう。

［田中　淡］

『田中淡訳・編『中国建築の歴史』（1981・平凡社）』▽『鄧健吾・田中淡監修、末房由美子訳『中国の建築』（1982・小学館）』▽『村田治郎・田中淡編『新装版　世界の文化史蹟17　中国の古建築』（1980・講談社）』

紫禁城太和殿
紫禁城外朝の正殿。中国最大の木造建築物である。3層の白色大理石の基壇上に建ち、東西約60m、南北約33m。1420年に建造されたが、その後、焼失と再建を繰り返し、現在の建物は1695年に再建されたもの。世界文化遺産「北京と瀋陽の明・清朝の皇宮群」の一部（中国・1987、2004年登録）　中国　北京©Shogakukan">

紫禁城太和殿

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例

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