An unprecedented survey of the origins and evolution of Chinese architecture, from the last millennia BCE to todayThroughout history, China has maintained one of the world’s richest built civilizations. The nation’s architectural achievements range from its earliest walled cities and the First Emperor’s vision of city and empire, to bridges, pagodas, and the twentieth-century constructions of the Socialist state. In this beautifully illustrated book, Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt presents the first fully comprehensive survey of Chinese architecture in any language. With rich political and historical context, Steinhardt covers forty centuries of architecture, from the genesis of Chinese building through to the twenty-first century and the challenges of urban expansion and globalism.Steinhardt follows the extraordinary breadth of China’s architectural legacy—including excavation sites, gardens, guild halls, and relief sculpture—and considers the influence of Chinese architecture on Japan, Korea, Mongolia, and Tibet. Architectural examples from Chinese ethnic populations and various religions are examined, such as monasteries, mosques, observatories, and tombs. Steinhardt also shows that Chinese architecture is united by a standardized system of construction, applicable whether buildings are temples, imperial palaces, or shrines. Every architectural type is based on the models that came before it, and principles established centuries earlier dictate building practices. China’s unique system has allowed its built environment to stand as a profound symbol of Chinese culture.With unprecedented breadth united by a continuous chronological narrative, Chinese Architecture offers the best scholarship available on this remarkable subject for scholars, students, and general readers

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Chinese Dynasties -- Map of China -- Introduction: Beyond the Forbidden City -- Chapter 1: Genesis of Chinese Buildings and Cities -- Chapter 2: Architecture of the First Emperor and His Predecessors -- Chapter 3: Han Architecture -- Chapter 4: An Age of Turmoil: Three Kingdoms -- Chapter 5: Northern Dynasties -- Chapter 6: Sui and Tang: Architecture for Empires -- Chapter 7: Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms -- Chapter 8: Grandeur and Magnificence under Liao and Western Xia -- Chapter 9: The Chinese Building Standards -- Chapter 10: Song Elegance and Jin Opulence -- Chapter 11: The Chinese City between Tang and Ming -- Chapter 12: The Mongol Century -- Chapter 13: The Chinese Imperial City and Its Architecture, Ming and Qing -- Chapter 14: Late Imperial Architecture in Chinese Style -- Chapter 15: Convergences: Lamaist, Dai, Islamic -- Chapter 16: Garden and House -- Chapter 17: China Comes to Europe, Europe Comes to China, Chinese Students Come to the United States -- Conclusion: Resolving the Forbidden City The Counteraxis -- Notes -- Glossary -- Selected Bibliography -- Image Credits -- Index