Sacred Landscapes of Imperial China : Astronomy, Feng Shui, and the Mandate of Heaven / by Giulio Magli.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Magli, Giulio, 1964- author.

Contributor:

SpringerLink (Online service)

Series:

Physics and Astronomy (SpringerNature-11651)

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Astronomy.

Astrophysics.

History.

Cultural property.

Landscape architecture.

Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology.

History of Science.

Science, Humanities and Social Sciences, multidisciplinary.

Cultural Heritage.

Landscape Architecture.

Local Subjects:

Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology.

History of Science.

Science, Humanities and Social Sciences, multidisciplinary.

Cultural Heritage.

Landscape Architecture.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (X, 179 pages) : 108 illustrations, 98 illustrations in color

Edition:

First edition 2020.

Contained In:

Springer Nature eBook

Place of Publication:

Cham : Springer International Publishing : Imprint: Springer, 2020.

System Details:

text file PDF

Summary:

This book analyses the magnificent imperial necropolises of ancient China from the perspective of Archaeoastronomy, a science which takes into account the landscape in which ancient monuments are placed, focusing especially but not exclusively on the celestial aspects. The power of the Chinese emperors was based on the so-called Mandate of Heaven: the rulers were believed to act as intermediaries between the sky gods and the Earth, and consequently, the architecture of their tombs, starting from the world-famous mausoleum of the first emperor, was closely linked to the celestial cycles and to the cosmos. This relationship, however, also had to take into account various other factors and doctrines, first the Zhao-Mu doctrine in the Han period and later the various forms of Feng Shui. As a result, over the centuries, diverse sacred landscapes were constructed. Among the sites analysed in the book are the "pyramids" of Xi'an from the Han dynasty, the mountain tombs of the Tang dynasty, and the Ming and Qing imperial tombs. The book explains how considerations such as astronomical orientation and topographical orientation according to the principles of Feng Shui played a fundamental role at these sites.

Contents:

Introduction

1. A mound and a terracotta army (Qin mausoleum)

2. Pyramids on the river (Han dynasty)

3. From pyramids to mountains (Tang and Song dynasty)

4. Three stones for a king (Ming at Nanjing)

5. 13 tombs, one landscape (Ming at Beijing)

6. The last dynasty (Qing dynasty).

Other Format:

Printed edition:

ISBN:

978-3-030-49324-0

9783030493240

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.