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Among the family of architecture of the world, Chinese architecture may be considered an independent branch by itself. Its history is as long as the history of Chinese civilization.
From every source of information—literary, graphical and exemplary—there can be gathered convincing evidences testifying to the fact that the Chinese people have always employed an indigenous system of construction and a conception of planning which have retained their principal characteristics from the earliest times till the present day. Over the vast area from Xinjiang to the Northeast, from Inner Mongolia to the South Sea coast, the same system of construction and planning is prevalent. Beyond China, in Korea and Japan in the east and Vietnam in the south, the same system of construction and similar plan arrangements are much used. And these have all along been the countries whose people have established very intimate contacts with the Chinese for thousands of years. The ability of this system to perpetuate itself for over four thousand years over such a vast area and still remain a living architecture, and to retain its principal characteristics in spite of repeated and continuous foreign influences, hostile or friendly, economical, cultural or military, is a phenomenon comparable only to the continuity of the civilization of which it forms an integral part.
1. Neolithic Remains
Excavation in 1954 at the village of Banpo, near Xi’an, led to the discovery of a number of pits in the loess stratum. They were identifie as remains of human habitations of the Neolithic period. Along the periphery of one of the larger pits of an oblong plan, of which only a portion now remains and estimated to have a major axis of about 20 meters long, is a low earthen wall in which are a row of holes containing charred studs of logs, evidently the lower ends of posts of a house that was later destroyed by fire. It is the remains of the earliest houses knownin China today. Of course, it would be too far-fetched to assume that any of the characteristics of the architecture that later developed in China may be traced in these primitive sites.
中国建筑在世界建筑群体中，可谓自成一体。中国建筑的历史与中国文明史相生相伴、源远流长。
从收集到的一些遗存文字、图案和标本等实物中可以找到充分的证据证明，国人一向采用的本土营造体系和设计构思，其主要特征从古至今未曾改变。在广袤的大地上，从新疆到东北，从内蒙古到南海沿岸，同样的营造和设计体系被广泛采用。甚至在周边国家，如东边的朝鲜和日本，以及南边的越南，也常常采用中国的营造体系和类似的平面布局。数千年来，这些国家一直和中国保持着密切的往来。四千多年来，尽管中国接连不断地受到外界的影响，无论是敌视的或是友善的，还是在经济、文化或军事方面，但在如此广袤的土地上，中国的建筑体系依然能够持久留存，栩栩如生，从而构成了绵延不断的中华文明的一部分。
1．新石器时代的遗存 1954年在西安附近半坡村考古挖掘时，发现了黄土地层的数个地坑，经确认是新石器时代人类聚居的穴居地遗址。[1] 其中的一个四方平面只有部分得以保存，据估算其主轴长约20米。当中的一个较大坑穴的外围是一堵低矮的土墙，上有一排洞眼，洞眼内为烧焦的木楔残物，显然是木骨泥墙房屋的柱础毁于火灾的痕迹。这是迄今所知中国最早的房屋遗址。当然，如果认为以后中国建筑发展的任何特征都可以追溯到这一原始遗址，那也未免太牵强附会了。
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2. Earliest Site Suggestive of Later Chinese Characteristics
Near Anyang, Henan Province, at the site of the palaces and necropolis of the Yin emperors, circa 1400 BC–1120 BC, archaeologists found the earliest remains of buildings that suggest the possible embodiment of the basic characteristics which later evolved and matured into architecture unique to China and her neighboring countries. At the site is large rammedearth platforms, on top of which are placed at regular intervals undressed boulders, each covered by a bronze disc. On top of these discs are found charred logs—the lower ends of wooden posts that once supported the superstructures which were burnt down at the sack of the capital circa 1120 BC. The arrangement of these bases of columns testifies to the existence of a structural system that had by this time already taken a very definite form. (Figure 1
The basic characteristics of Chinese architecture may be considered from two aspects—the structural system and the plan arrangement. The structure of the individual building, as it is found today as well as more than three thousand years ago, consists of, in general parti, a raised platform or stylobate which forms the base for a structure with a timber skeleton of posts and lintels which in turn supports the roof, generally pitched and with overhanging eaves.
2．具有中国建筑特征的最早遗址 在河南安阳附近所发现的公元前约1400年到公元前1120年殷商王宫和陵墓遗址中，考古学家找到了后来演变和发展成为中国及周边国家建筑独有的基本特征的可能例证。遗址中大型夯土台基的顶端，间隔均匀铺陈着原料石块，石块上均覆盖着青铜圆板，上置柱础，即曾经用以支撑上部结构的木柱下端。大约在公元前1120年，都城被攻陷，上部结构被焚。从这些柱础的排列看来，此时的结构体系已明显成型。（图1）
中国建筑的基本特点可从结构体系和平面布局两方面来考量。现今发现三千多年前的单体建筑，其结构通常包括一个垒抬提升的台基或柱座，以作为整座建筑的基础。建筑有着木结构的立柱和横梁，用以支撑屋顶；屋顶则通常带坡度，有飞檐。
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This osseous construction lends complete freedom in walling and fenestration and renders a house, by merely adjusting the proportion between walls and openings, practical and comfortable in any climate varying from that of the tropical south to that of sub-artic Manchuria. (Figure 2) It is this extremely high degree of flexibility and adaptability that enables this architecture to follow the Chinese people to wherever place they chose to settle down and live without encountering any difficulty in sheltering its occupants from the elements, however divers they may be. Perhaps nothing analogous is found in the architecture elsewhere until the invention of the reinforced concrete and the steel framing system in the nineteenth century.
这一框架结构在屋墙上开窗通风极为方便，只需调节好墙体和门洞、窗口之间的比例，即可使房屋不管是处于炎热的南方还是在寒冷的东北都既实用又舒适。（图2）正是由于这一建筑结构极高的灵活性和适应性，中国人无论走到哪里，在哪里居住，无论他们生活方式如何不同，都不会受到恶劣天气的困扰。在19世纪钢筋混凝土及钢结构出现之前，恐怕很难在其他地方找出类似的建筑。
In plan, a “house” in the Chinese sense of the word is generally composed of a number of such individual buildings which are then connected to each other by auxiliary buildings—verandas, loggias, portals, etc.—so disposed of to form one or a series of courtyards or patios. Such courtyards are generally paved and often planted with trees and flowers, forming very pleasant “out door living rooms.” As a rule, the buildings around a courtyard are generally symmetrically arranged along a principal axis. But for gardens, or when required by the topography, informal arrangements become the rule.
1. The Structure of the Individual Buildin
It is necessary to analyze the Chinese frame construction in order to have a better understanding of Chinese architecture. The basic unit of the skeleton is a frame composed of two posts supporting a beam, on top of which, in turn, are one or two or even three successive tiers of beams standing on studs. As the tiers pile up, the lengths of the beams above diminish, and, on the uppermost and shortest beam stands a king post, the top of which forms the apex of a triangle thus formed. This is what one will see in a transversal section drawing of a building. Such a unit is called a liangjia or “beam-frame.” A pair of such liangjia placed side by side at certain distances, and connected to each other by lintels or tie-beams reaching from the top of the post of one liangjia to that of the adjacent liangjia, define a space called jian or bay.
在平面布局术语中，汉语的“房屋”一词，通常是指数座单体建筑，通过游廊、凉廊、门廊等附属建筑，将彼此连接起来，形成一个或一系列院落。这些庭院一般都经过铺设，莳花种树，形成赏心悦目的“露天客厅”。院落四周的建筑，通常沿中轴线对称排列。对于园圃，可因顺地形地势不拘一格，予以适当变通。
1．单体建筑结构 如想更好地了解中国建筑，就有必要分析中国的框架结构。其基本框架单位是由两根柱子支撑着一根横梁的结构。横梁之上，相继依次排列着单层或两三层用直立柱支撑的横木。层层垒高的同时，横木长度向上依次缩短，最上层也就是最短的横木上架设中柱，其上端由此构成三角形稳定结构的顶点。这就是建筑剖面图中所显示的形式。这样的一个单位称为一副“梁架”。梁架组对间隔排列，由从一个梁架立柱顶端延伸到相邻梁架的横梁或系梁连接组成的空间，称作“间”或“格”。
A building, usually oblong in shape, is constructed by a repetition of these jian and liangjia. On the ends of the successive tiers of beams are placed purlins on which, in turn, are placed rafters. The rafters are covered with sheathing and tiles to complete the roof. The spaces between every two posts can be filled with walls, windows, doors or light movable partitions, or as for a garden pavilion, left entirely open on all sides.
2. The Dougon
One particular feature in this structural frame deserves special attention. It is the dougong, employed generally in buildings of a monumental character. In order to counteract the shearing stress at the joints of vertical and horizontal members, particularly at the points where the beam is supported by the post, the architect of perhaps more than two thousand years ago invented the method of putting trapezoidal blocks and bow-shaped “arms” in tiers as corbels, and thus created a transitory element known as dougong. The term means simply block (dou) and “arm” (gong). The tiers o“arms,” when extending into the interior of the building, receive the ends of the principal beams, while the other half of the “arms,” extending outward, receive the overhanging eaves of the roof. The dougong was originally conceived as a structural element, but its decorative potentiality was soon discovered and exploited to the utmost degree. (Figure 3)
建筑通常呈矩形，由若干“间”和“梁架”组成。横木各层末端架设桁条，其上架椽。椽上覆盖木板，木板上铺置瓦片，构成屋顶。每两根立柱间为墙体、门窗或轻型活动隔扇，为花园亭台时四面则完全敞开。
2．斗拱 这种框架结构的一个显著特点值得格外关注，这就是通常在大型建筑中采用的斗拱。为了平衡垂直和水平部件连接处的剪应力，尤其在立柱支撑横梁的部位，大约两千多年前的建筑师就想出了一个办法，将梯形的“斗”和弓形的“拱”作为枕梁托置于梁之间，因而创造出了斗拱这一过渡构件。这一名称包含了“斗”和“拱”两层意思。一层层的“拱”的一端延伸至建筑内部，以承托主梁末端；“拱”的另一端则向外延伸，以承托屋顶飞檐。最初，斗拱只被视为一个结构部件，但其装饰潜能很快被发现，并被发挥到极致。（图 3）
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3. Modular System
From a treatise on architecture, the Ying-tsao-fa-shih , first published in the year 1100 AD, it is known for certain that not later, and possibly even much earlier, than then, the dimension of one member of the dougong—the width of the gong or “arm”—was set as the module for determining the proportions of every structural member as well as that of the entire building. The module is classified into a certain number of “sizes” or “classes” for buildings of different sizes and functions. By employing this modular system in the process of designing, the architect’s work is much simplified and structural members could be prefabricated elsewhere and then assembled at the building site. Certainly, judging from the scientific standards of today, this rather rudimentary system could stand no comparison with the modular, prefabrication, standardization and typification of today. Nevertheless, it may justly be called an elementary prototype of the modern method.
From another point of view, the dougong, together with its column and eave, is in certain respects similar to the order in European classical architecture. The difference lies in the fact that the European order wa employed essentially as an aesthetic consideration while the Chinese “order,” if it may be so called, has remained throughout structural in function and its aesthetic quality is integrally identified with the construction. The dougong was also employed as a purely decorative architectural treatment on masonry buildings, such as pagodas. The earliest example is found on some ashlar monumental piers, called qüe, of the second century AD.
4. The Roo
Another characteristic to be noticed is the important role played by the roof in Chinese architecture. From poems of as early as the eleventh century BC, there were already verses eulogizing the beauty of the roof. Wings of birds were used as metaphor for describing the out-stretching eaves. The typical Chinese roof is pitched and the surface is formed by aslightly “sagged” plane. This effect is acquired by adjusting the lengths an elevation of each tier of beam of the liangjia. The ridges where two roof planes meet are usually accentuated by raised moldings and decorated with ornaments of mythological animal motifs. Perhaps by the time not later than the eleventh century AD, colored glazed tiles, usually of yellow or green, were used on roofs. The glistening colors make the roof a glorious crowning feature of the building.
3．模数制 从最初刊行于公元1100年的建筑专著《营造法式》中可以确切得知，当时甚至是更早些时候，就把斗拱的拱的宽度确定为决定每个结构部件乃至整个建筑比例的度量单位。这一度量单位根据建筑的不同尺寸和功能分为一定数量的“尺寸”或“级别”。这一模数体系在设计中的应用使建筑师的工作大为简化。一些建筑构件可以在别处预制，然后在建筑工地组装。当然，从今天的科学标准来看，这一相当原始的建筑程式无法与今天的模件、预制、标准化和典型化相提并论。尽管如此，将其称之为现代化建筑程式的基本原型还是当之无愧的。
从另一个角度看，斗拱结构，加之立柱和屋檐，在某些方面类似于欧洲古典建筑中的“柱式”。不同之处在于，欧洲的“柱式”的应用本质上出于审美的考虑，而中国的“柱式”——如果可以这么表达的话——则自始至终承担着结构功能，而其审美特性与建筑整体是融为一体的。斗拱在砖石建筑中也只是起着装饰性的作用，比如砖石砌筑的宝塔。斗拱的这一功能，已从公元2世纪遗留下来的、被称为“阙”的石碑基中找到了最早的例证。 [2]
4．屋顶 另一个值得注意的特点是屋顶在中国建筑中扮演的重要角色。早在公元前11世纪的诗歌中，就有了称颂屋顶之美的诗文，用飞禽的双翼来比喻向外延展的屋檐。[3] 典型的中国式屋顶，是由稍微倾斜的斜坡平面层层组成的。这种效果是通过调整“梁架”每一层梁的长度和高度而形成的。屋顶坡面两两相交的屋脊，通常通过加高的线脚予以强化，并用神兽饰物点缀。或许在不晚于公元11世纪之时，明黄色或碧绿色的琉璃彩瓦就已经常用于屋顶。熠熠生辉的色彩，使得建筑物的屋顶如同灿烂的冠冕一般辉煌。
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The architects of ancient China paid much attention to the depth of the overhang of the eave. Generally it is designed so that the entire south wall will be completely under the shadow of the eave during the latter part of June to assure maximum coolness in the summer and, while in the winter months, the sunlight may reach far into the back part of the room. (Figure 4)
中国古代的建筑师非常重视飞檐的进深。设计时通常要使6月的下半个月期间整面南墙都处于檐影遮蔽之下，以保证夏季最大限度的凉爽。而在冬季的岁月里，关于采光条件，又能做到让阳光可以一直照射到房屋后部。（图 4）
5. Color
The decorative potentiality of paint, a material at first employed essentially for the protection of timber, was discovered by the architect and made the maximum use of since about a thousand years ago. From the Ying-tsao-fa-shih , one can see that by the Song Dynasty (960–1279 AD), the decorative use of paint had already formulated into a definite system,which was, in general principle, followed till today. The posts, doors and windows and the walls of monumental building are usually painted red, while the lintels and dougong above are decorated with patterns painted principally in a combination of blue and green, relieved with specks of red and gold. Thus the parts exposed to direct sunlight are warm while the shadowed portions are cold in tone of colors, thereby accentuating the effects of contrast between light and shade. The same distribution of color is also carried into the interior of the building. Indeed, in the handling of colors, the architects of ancient China have displayed, perhaps, more audacity than their colleagues in other countries.
5．色彩 最早基于保护木材的目的而使用的油漆材料，其装饰效果直到大约一千年前才被建筑师发现并应用到极致。根据《营造法式》的记载，我们可以得知，及至宋朝（公元960─1279年），油漆的装饰性使用已成固定程式，其总体原则沿用至今。重大建筑的柱体、门窗和墙体通常为朱红色，而上方门楣和斗拱装饰有以蓝绿色为主色、以朱红色和金黄色为点缀辅色的图案。这样一来，直接向阳的部分为暖色调，而阴影部分为冷色调，加强了光与影的对比效果。同样的色彩分布也适用于建筑内部。的确，在色彩的处理上，中国古代的建筑师比其他国家的建筑同仁或许要大胆破格得多。
Of course, such lavish play of color is generally employed on buildings of monumental character. The same color scheme, but more restrained and subdued, are also used on residential buildings in North China. But in the south, where the climate is warm, especially in the average dwelling houses, white walls and natural or dark brown timber is generally the rule. Such quiet combination of colors is perhaps more apt to induce a feeling of coolness.
6. Versatility in Planning
The skeleton system of construction lends great versatility in plan arrangements. This system, besides the freedom it gives to fenestration,also permits the free arrangement of interior partitions to fulfill differen requirements. Through the manipulation of columniation, almost any desired shape of plan can be acquired. The skeleton system also possesses a high degree of adaptability to the ups and downs of tricky topography. This asset the Chinese architect did not fail to utilize to the highest degree.
Needless to say that the above mentioned are not all the characteristics of Chinese architecture. But they are the basic and most outstanding ones that give Chinese architecture its own character.
当然，浓艳重彩的装饰，主要是用于某些标志性的重大建筑。同样的色彩装饰也见于华北民居，但色调更加拘谨柔和。而在气候温暖的南方，尤其在普通民居中，则较常采用白色的墙体和自然色或深棕色的木材。这种素色搭配可能更易于产生清凉之感。
6．布局的多样化 中国建筑的骨架结构体系带来了平面布局的多样化。这一体系，除了给开门辟窗提供自由空间外，还可根据不同需求对内部间隔进行自由安排。通过调整柱间距，几乎可以形成任何想要的平面布局。这种结构体系也具有高度的适应性，可适用于各种高低不平的复杂地势。关于这一点，中国的建筑师将其发挥到了极致。
毫无疑问，以上所述并非中国建筑的全部特点，但却是中国建筑基本的同时也是最突出的特征。
Before proceeding into a discussion of the types and certain representative examples of Chinese architecture, perhaps it is necessary to trace, however briefly, the development of Chinese architecture through the past three or four thousand years. Taking into consideration the social, economical, political and technological developments as they were reflected in architecture, the developments of Chinese architecture may be tentatively divided into the following six principal stages.
From the very early days of primitive society to the downfall of the first great Chinese empire—the Han Dynasty—in the year 220 AD, is the stage marking the dawn of Chinese architecture to its age of early maturity. The natural cave was a natural solution to the primitive man’s domicile problem. The site of the famous Peking Man at Zhoukoudian near Peking revealed to us the fact that the primitive man living in North China five hundred thousand years ago had not yet made any attempt to construct for himself a shelter.
在讨论中国建筑的具体类型和代表性实例之前，或许有必要简要回顾一下中国建筑在过去三四千年之间的发展情况。考虑到建筑所反映的社会、经济、政治和技术发展历程，可试将中国建筑的发展历程分为以下六个主要阶段。
时间起始点为原始社会早期，至公元220年中国伟大的封建王朝汉朝衰败，这一阶段标志着中国建筑从起步发展到早期成熟阶段。天然洞穴是原始人类解决居住问题的自然途径。著名的京郊周口店“北京猿人”遗址，向我们证明了50万年前生活在华北地区的原始人还未曾有过为自己建造房屋的任何尝试。
The remains of the earliest constructed dwelling are those found at the village of Banpo, as mentioned above. But the first indications of the basic characteristics of Chinese architecture are not to be seen until the Yin Dynasty, circa fifteenth century BC to eleventh century BC, at Anyang, the site of the Yin capital.
From about 1000 BC to 220 BC is a period in which several hundred semi-independent principalities were gradually unified into a centrally administered empire, as a result of which the Qin Dynasty was founded. A certain number of tombs and a few gigantic earthen terraces are the only remnants we have of this period. But from a few decorative patterns engraved on bronze vessels, depicting dwelling houses of the time, it can be seen that the characteristics mentioned above had by this time definitely taken shape. From literary sources, we learned that the palaces and tombs of the emperor who for the first time unified China—Qin Shihuangdi—were indeed extremely extensive in scale, rich and elaborate in architectural treatment and luxurious in furnishing.
Principles for laying out the capital city of a ruling king or emperor were specified as early as the eleventh century BC
From 206 BC to 220 AD is the period of the famous Han Dynasty, the great dynasty that, on the basis of the short-lived Qin Dynasty, consolidated China into a great empire. By this time, China had already entered into a stage of fully matured feudalism. As a result of the political and economical unification and the redistribution of land after several centuries of incessant wars, together with the introduction of ferro implements, productivity reached an unprecedented high. The prosperity of the period was reflected vividly in its architecture, which was given the opportunity of making a big stride forward in its development. According to literary records, the palaces of the Han emperors were so vast that they had “a thousand doors and ten thousand windows.” There were “warm pavilions” for the winter and “cool palaces” for the summer. The beams and columns were decorated with gold and precious stones. The dougongwere elaborately painted and the rafters exquisitely carved. The walls were covered either with mural paintings of mythological beings and ethereal clouds or with rich brocade hangings. During the later half of the dynasty, when land and wealth became more and more concentrated, nobilities, high officials and even rich merchants, fattened by unscrupulous exploitation, also built for themselves luxurious mansions and gardens. Meanwhile the housing of the urban poor became a problem. History recorded a decree mandated by an emperor ordering the erection of “two hundred regions of houses in Chang’an to house the poor.”
最早的人为建造的住所遗址，为上文提到的西安半坡村。但中国建筑早期的基本特点，直到大约在公元前15世纪至公元前11世纪时期的殷朝才开始显现，遗址位于都城所在地安阳。
大约在公元前1000年至公元前220年的这段时期，数百个半独立的诸侯王国逐渐统一成一个中央集权的帝国，于是秦朝建立了。这一时期除几处陵墓遗址和为数不多的巨型土台之外，并无其他遗迹史料可循。但是从青铜器上所刻的几处描绘当时居住房舍的装饰性图案可以看出，此时上文所述特点业已成型。文献表明，历史上第一位统一中国的皇帝秦始皇的宫室与陵墓规模极其宏大，建筑富丽堂皇，装饰极为豪华。
君主或帝王的都城布局原则，早在公元前11世纪时就有规定。
公元前206年至公元220年，为著名的两汉王朝。在短命的秦王朝基础上，汉朝将中国建成为一个强大的帝国。此时，中国已经进入封建主义完全成熟的阶段。历经数世纪之久的战事之后，政治和经济上重新统一，土地重新分配，铁器开始推广，生产力达到了空前的高度。这一时期的繁荣景象，从其建筑中得到了生动的体现，建筑也得以向前迈进了一大步。据文字记载，汉朝皇帝的宫殿宏伟壮丽，有“千门万”的说法。这些宫廷建筑冬有“暖亭”，夏有“凉宫”。横梁立柱，金雕玉刻；斗拱彩绘繁复，椽子精工雕琢。墙上绘有神灵和祥云壁画或饰以绫罗绸缎。后汉即东汉时期，土地和财富更加集中，贵族、高官甚至富商大贾大肆搜刮掳掠，也为自己建造豪华的宅第和苑囿。与此同时，广大城市贫民的住房却成为一个问题。据历史记载，曾有皇帝下诏，命令在长安城里划出两百个“闾里”“街巷”的面积建房造屋，以供下户贫民居住。 [4]
It was the belief of that time that the gods and immortals had the preference to dwell in high towers. So, in order to induce the condescension of these heavenly beings, very high towers were also erected in the imperial parks.
Trade contacts with West Asia during this period also brought from the West cultural elements which are reflected also in architecture. The arch appeared for the first time in this period. Some archaeologist and architectural historians brought forth the contention that it is an importation from the West. But no agreement has been reached on the controversy. History also records for the first time the using of human figures as architectural embellishments. Notable among these are the twelve bronze figures in front of the palace of Qin Shihuangdi. The winged-lion, probably of Assyrian origin, appeared in sculpture and the grape, then a new comer to China, became a favorite decorative motif.
Buddhism was also introduced into China at this time. At the end of the second or the beginning of the third century AD, the Buddhist pagoda, developed from the indigenous high towers for the gods and immortals, was recorded in history to have made its appearance.
All these new elements from the West had greatly enriched the architecture of China.
From the beginning of the third century to the end of the sixth century AD was a period in Chinese history in which the situation of division lasted longest and war was almost incessant. It was also a period in which Chinese culture, including architecture, was greatly influenced by, and absorbed most from, Indian and Central Asian culture. In such a period of political unrest and economic insecurity, the newly imported religion of Buddhism found a favorable soil for nurture.
The social situation was duly mirrored in architecture. Miniature capitals for petty “emperors” were built and destroyed as the “dynasties” were established and vanquished. The Han people (the national majority of China today), whose rulers being driven to the south of the Yangzi River, saw six dynastic changes in three centuries. Only the Northern Wei Dynasty in the north, founded by the Toba tribe, enjoyed a comparatively long regime of one and a half centuries. Buddhist temples and pagodas were built almost everywhere. It may be assumed that, prior to this time, the only monumental buildings in the cities were the palaces of the emperors and mansions of the nobilities. But with the sporadic construction of Buddhist temples and pagodas, there appeared in the cities, besides the palaces and mansions, rich and monumental temple buildings and ensembles accessible to the public and, therefore, of a more or less popular nature. These undoubtedly greatly altered the general appearance and silhouette of the Chinese cities.
当时据信，长生不老的神仙喜居高塔。因此，为了赢得天神的青睐，皇家园林中也修建了很多高塔。
与西亚贸易的接触，给中国带来西方的文化元素，同样在中国建筑中有所反映。拱门在这一时期首次出现。一些考古学家和建筑史学家对拱门的建造是否由西方引入争论不休，但迄今尚无定论。此外，建筑装饰中人形也首次出现，其中较为著名的是秦始皇宫殿前的12个铜人。 雕塑中还出现了带翼的狮子，可能是来自亚述文化；而当时刚传入中国的葡萄，也成了热门的装饰性主题图案。
佛教也在此时传入中国。在公元2世纪末或3世纪初，从为神灵修建的本土高塔发展而来的佛塔，如记载所示，已在历史上出现了。
所有这些来自西方的新元素，都极大丰富了中国的建筑。
从公元3世纪初到6世纪末，是中国历史上纷争历时最久、战争频繁不断的时期，同时也是包括建筑在内的中国文化吸收印度和中亚文化最多、受其影响最大的时期。这样一个政局动荡、经济萧条的情况，就为新近传入的佛教的滋生和发展，创造了良好条件。
当时的社会状况也相应在建筑中有所反映。那时候，群雄割据、交相秉政、称霸一方的“帝王”，都各自兴建了规模不大的国都，随后朝纲衰落凌替，都城也烟消云泯。汉族（当今中国人口最多的民族）的统治者被驱逐到长江以南，在三个世纪中经历了六次王朝更迭。只有由拓跋部在北方建立的北魏王朝，持续了相对较长的一个半世纪。佛教寺庙和宝塔几乎遍及各地。据推测，此前城市中最雄伟的建筑就是帝王宫殿及贵族宅邸。但随着佛教寺庙和佛塔的零星建造，城市中除了宫殿官邸之外，还出现了华丽而巨大的庙宇建筑和建筑组群，准许民众入内，因而也就多少带有亲民的大众化性质。这无疑极大改变了中国城市的整体景观和风貌。
History cited the donation by an empress to a Buddhist temple, a pagoda measuring “one thousand feet in height,” only to be destroyed in a war a few years after its completion.
The principal remains of this period are a number of rock-cut or cave temples and a few masonry pagodas. Some of the cave temples, such as those at Yungang near Datong, at Maiji Shan near Tianshui and at Tianlong Shan near Taiyüan are given architectural treatments of a high degree of perfection.
The oldest Buddhist pagoda standing in China today is one from this period. The pagoda of Songyue Si in the Song Mountains, Henan Province, built in the year 520 AD, measuring about 40 meters high and sparsely embellished with a few motifs of Indian origin, heralded the appearance of a new architectural type in China.
From these remains of the period, is seen that Chinese architecture in this stage was how much influenced by that of India, Western Asia, and even, Greece. Buddhism brought forth to the Chinese architects new problems and laid down new requirements. These new requirements and problems must be fulfilled and solved with new conceptions. The architects of the period successfully accomplished their task by ingeniously adapting and developing their traditional architecture and created new types and ensembles to meet the new demands. Western influences are also seen in decorative motifs, some of which have, in due course of time, so climatized that they became inseparable and indiscernible elements in Chinese art and architecture.
By the end of the sixth century, China was once more unified. The recovery of production after a long period of wars, the political reunification and the development of foreign trade all became powerful impetus to architectural activities.
The Sui Dynasty, a mere “prelude” to the Great Tang Dynasty, planned and started building an imperial capital—Chang’an, Xi’an of today—in magnitude unprecedented in history. With a definite attempt to build a city with zoning according to functions, the imperial palaces, the area for government offices, residential super-blocks (called fang) and tradin squares were all arranged with precise order in the rectangular, walled city. All these areas and blocks were divided and inter-connected by a checkerboard system of boulevards, arterial streets and minor streets. (Figure 5)
据历史记载，某皇后曾为佛教寺庙捐赠一座佛塔，“高千尺”，但建成数年之后即毁于战乱。
这一时期的主要遗存建筑物，包括一些石窟或洞窟以及凤毛麟角的砖石宝塔。其中一些石窟，如大同附近的云冈石窟、天水附近的麦积山石窟以及太原附近的天龙山石窟，建筑处理都达到了较高的水准。
中国保存至今最古老的佛塔就出自这一时期。河南省嵩山嵩岳寺塔，建于公元520年，高约40米，雕饰有一些印度图案，标志着一种新的建筑形式在中国的出现。
从这一时期遗存的建筑可以看出，中国建筑在此时期很大程度上受到了印度、西亚甚至希腊的诸多影响。佛教为中国建筑师带来了新的问题，并提出了新的要求。要满足新要求，解决新问题，就必须采用新的理念。当时的建筑师成功地做到了这一点：他们巧妙地修改、发展了传统建筑，对形式和整体进行了创新，以适应当时新的要求。西方的影响也可从装饰图案中看出，其中的一些随着时间的推移变得非常本土化了，甚至已演变发展成为中国艺术和建筑中不可分割的部分。
到公元6世纪末，中国再度统一。连年战乱之后生产的恢复、政治上的重新统一以及对外贸易的发展，都对建筑业的繁荣起到了强有力的推动作用。
为大唐揭开历史序幕的隋朝建立后，开始大兴土木，在汉长安城（即今日西安）旧址的基础上建造新都。其规模之宏大，可称史无前例。新都的建设明确根据建筑的性质进行分区规划；宫殿、官府和坊市都在城墙围蔽的四方城垣里归整排列。所有这些区域都由畦分棋布的纵横干道和大街小巷分隔和连接。（图 5）
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In the city of Chang’an during the Tang Dynasty, there were traders in large numbers from various Western Asian countries. There were also Buddhist missionaries from India and artists from Khotan, Afghanistan, etc. Painting, sculpture, music, dancing were all enriched by the absorption of Western influences. In architecture, either technologically or artistically, an unprecedented high tide was reached.
The oldest specimen of the timber skeleton structures existing in China date from the Tang Dynasty. Here we see that the carpenter’s art had reached a high degree of mastery. The structural members are logically and organically integrated. The architectural treatment shows a high degree of refinement and sensitiveness. The only two examples ar the principal halls of the Nanchan Si and of Fokuang Si, both situated in the Wutai Mountains in the Province of Shanxi.
The pagoda, which in the previous stage of development was mostly built with wood, was, by this time, gradually substituted by masonry structures. New types of pagodas were innovated from time to time. The facades of some pagodas were given architectural treatments representing the forms of timber construction—the column, the lintel, the dougong and the eave. This conception is identical with the way the classic orders were employed on the facades of European architecture.
唐朝的长安城内，来自西亚诸国的商贩为数颇多，还有来自印度的佛教徒和来自和阗、阿富汗等地的艺术家。绘画、雕刻、音乐、舞蹈均因受西方影响而得以大大丰富。建筑方面，不管是技术或是艺术方面，均进入了前所未有的全盛时期。
中国现存最早的木结构建筑典范就出自唐代，从中可见木匠工艺的精湛程度。结构部件合理而有机地耦合在一起，建筑处理手法也展现了高度的精湛入微的水平。仅存的两个实例是均位于山西省五台山的南禅寺和佛光寺的主殿。
此前佛塔多用木造，此时首次逐渐以砖石结构取而代之，形式上不断推陈出新。部分佛塔的立面进行了木结构式的处理——采用了立柱、横梁、斗拱和屋檐。这一概念与欧洲建筑立面采用的古典柱式相同。
The plan of the pagoda in this period is generally squared in shape. Th superstructure is hollow, like a covered smoke stack. The floor is of wood The treatment of the mass form may be classified into two main categorie according to the division of floor heights and the application of eaves. One we may call the “multi-storied” pagoda, which is a super-position of a number of single-storied pavilions. Another we may call the “multi-eaved” pagoda, which takes the form of a lofty main story topped by tiers of eaves almost one right on top of another. In general effect, the pagodas of this period are rather austere, some very robust and even severe.The wide spread use of masonry indicates the advances made in both the technique of making and using of brick. The arch was used on almost all openings of brick pagodas. One arched structure of supreme importance in the history of bridge architecture is the open-spandrel bridge at Zhao Xian, Hebei Province. Built during the Sui Dynasty (588–618 AD), with a principal arch spanning nearly 38 meters, it boasts to be the earliest open-spandrel bridge known in the world. (Figure 6)
From the beginning of the tenth century to the middle of the fourteenth century, there were a series of wars among the Han people themselves and also between the Han people and various branches of the Tungus and Mongols from the north. The quick succession of the Five Dynasties and Ten States were eventually, in the year 960 AD, unified by the Song Dynasty, only to be, in turn, incessantly oppressed first by the Khitans and later by the Nüchens from the northeast. Finally, in 1280, the Mongols conquered the entire land and China became a part of the great Mongol Empire, called the Yuan Dynasty in Chinese history.
Except for the mere half-a-century after the founding of the Song Dynasty, there were hardly any interlude of peace. Corrupt government officials and high concentration of land piled up wealth for the ruling class, who became great patrons in architecture and objet d’art in general. Meanwhile peasants were driven into rebellion and “vacuums” were created to invite invasion.
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这一时期佛塔的平面布局基本呈方形。上部结构中空，类似加盖的烟囱；地面则为木制的。根据地面高度的分隔和屋檐的应用，可以将佛塔形式分为两大类。一种即所谓“多层”佛塔，即楼阁式塔，由多个单层亭阁重叠起来。另一种称作“多重檐”佛塔，即密檐式塔，形式上类似于较高的主楼层上屋檐层层错位堆叠的处理手法。总体效果上，该时期的佛塔相当朴实无华，有的则显得庄严甚而肃穆。
大规模使用砖石标志着砖石制作和运用技术上的进步。几乎所有砖塔的入口都采用拱门。在桥梁建筑史上非常重要的一座拱形建筑是河北省赵县的安济桥。它建造于隋朝（公元588─618年），主拱跨度几乎达38米，为世界上目前所知最早的空腹拱桥（又称敞肩拱桥）。（图 6）
从公元10世纪初到14世纪中叶，汉族内部及汉族与北方的通古斯族和蒙古族之间爆发了一系列战争。五代十国迅速更替之后，宋朝终于在公元960年统一中原，但仍然不断地受到东北的契丹以及后来女真族的侵扰。最终于公元1280年，蒙古征服全部疆土，中国成为大蒙古帝国的一部分，这在中国历史上称为元朝。
这一时期除了宋朝建国初期的半个世纪以外，鲜有和平的缓歇。朝廷官员的腐败和土地的高度集中化，为统治阶级积累了大量财富，他们由此得以出资促进建筑和艺术发展。与此同时，农民被迫起义造反；由此形成的“真空地带”，招致了外来侵略。
The principal developments of this stage are the great increase in the sizes of architectural ensembles and the advances made in architectural refinements. The imperial palaces of the Song rulers were cited in history to have consisted of more than three thousand jians. In order to economize on materials and labor and to speed up the processes in designing and construction in such vast scale, the method of typification and standardization was sought. Thus, centuries of heritage in the art and technique of building was summarized, systematized, and compiled into the famous treatise on architecture, the Ying-tsao-fa-shih . As mentioned above, a modular system was definitely set, with which the dimensions and proportions of the building was computed and structural as well as decorative members could be prefabricated elsewhere and be shipped to and assembled at the building site. Ever since, standardization and typification with the modular system has become the common practice in Chinese architecture. Specific dimensions and proportions may vary from time to time and in different localities, but the principle is the same.The compilation and publication of the Ying-tsao-fa-shih must thus be considered an event of great historical significance in the development of Chinese architecture.
这一时期的主要发展在于建筑群规模扩大以及手法日趋华丽精细。史书记载，宋朝的皇宫超过三千来间。为节约材料和劳力，并且加快大规模建筑物的设计速度和建造进程，出现了对典型化和标准化的追求。因此，数世纪以来的建筑艺术和建造技术得以总结、系统化并编成著名的建筑文献《营造法式》一书。如前所言，模数制已确定下来，并据此规制计算建筑的尺寸和比例。结构性部件和装饰性部件可以在别处预先制作，尔后运至建筑现场进行组装。自此以后，应用模数制的标准化和典型化在中国建筑中成为惯例。[5]具体的尺寸和比例因时因地制宜，但原则始终如一。《营造法式》的编撰出版因而成为中国建筑发展史上的一个重要事件。
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There are still a considerable number of edifices from this period standing today. (Figures 7, 8) Except a few bridges, all are religious buildings—temples and pagodas. Among these, all the temple buildings are of timber construction; but the pagodas left to us from this period, though most of them are masonry structures, also include a unique specimen of wooden pagoda. (Figures 9, 10)As the number of buildings that survived till today became greater, examples representing varieties in use, construction and form also increased. Among the timber skeleton buildings, besides the most commonly seen principal hall, there are preserved also libraries, side-halls, gateway buildings, etc. The buildings are also seen in various story-heights, from the singlestoried hall to a pagoda of five principal and four mezzanine stories. Various roof forms—the wudian or hip-roof, the xieshan or gabled-roof with eave under the gable and the double-eaved roof—are found. These roof forms, although known to have been created perhaps even as early as the Han Dynasty, and depicted in paintings and sculpture in the cave temples, but with the exception of the wudian, no actual specimen survived from the former periods. The dougong became smaller, in comparison with the former stage of development, in proportion. But still, in the northern provinces, and during the early part of this stage of development, the more robust proportion of the former stage was retained for a considerable length of time. Thus, local characteristics can be more noticeably detected
In plan arrangement, there are a few ensembles partly, or to a certain degree completely, preserved. A principal building is often flanked by a smaller building on each side, all arranged in a row and facing the same direction. Buildings on either side of the courtyard are given more importance. Instead of the veranda or gallery of uniform height, it is accentuated by placing in its middle a building of more prominence. With this treatment, a cross-wise axis is definitely introduced
现存的这一时期的宏伟建筑，数目较大。除寥若晨星的几座桥梁之外，全部为寺庙和佛塔等宗教建筑。（图 7，8）其中，所有寺庙均为木结构。至于此阶段所有留存的佛塔，则大多为砖石结构，只有一座独特的木构架八角塔（即山西应县佛宫寺释迦塔，俗称应县木塔）除外。（图 9，10）
随着遗留实物数量的增多，用途、建造和形式方面各种类型的个案也随之增加。在木骨架建筑中，除最常见的主殿外，还保留有藏经楼、配殿、山门等。建筑层高不定，从单层的殿堂到主层五层和夹层四层的佛塔都有。不同的屋顶形式，如庑殿、歇山、重檐等，均可找到实例。这些屋顶形式虽然可能早在汉代就已建造出来，并在石窟的壁画和雕刻中也都有所呈现，但是除了庑殿之外，并无更早的实物得以留存下来。较先前阶段，斗拱的比例变小。但在北方诸省中，这一阶段的早期，在较长一段时间内仍保持了前一阶段的较大比例的斗拱。因此，地方特征表现较为显著。
在平面布局上，屈指可数的几个建筑群得到了部分的或某种程度上全面的保存。主建筑两侧经常排列有较小的建筑，按同一方向连成轴线。庭院两侧的建筑也得到了重视。长廊或走廊也并非高度取齐，而是在庭院正中设置更为突出的建筑。如此一来，形成了鲜明的十字交叉轴线布局。
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It is quite natural that the number of masonry pagodas that survived till today should be much greater than that of wooden buildings. With the single exception of the wooden pagoda mentioned above, all the pagodas from this period that are still standing are masonry structures.
Pagodas of this period assume a greater variety of forms. Instead of the square plan, which was almost the absolute rule in the former stage of development, the octagon became the favorite plan shape of this period and thereafter. (Figures 11, 12)
相比于木建筑而言，留存至今的砖石佛塔数量自然更多。除上文提及的应县木塔这一例外，这一时期所有保留下来的佛塔均为砖石结构。
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这一时期的佛塔形式多样。布局方面，除了此前阶段几乎作为绝对法则的方形，八边形成为了此时和之后最受欢迎的平面布局。[6]（图 11，12）
The “multi-storied” and the “multi-eaved” are still the two principal types in the treatment of the mass and silhouette of the pagoda. But the octagonal plan has given them an effect of slenderness and richer play of light. In general, the pagoda of this period became more refined and elegant. Some of them are more restrained, attaining their aesthetic effect by well studied proportion and are sparingly ornamented. But there are also a considerable number of them that are given architectural embellishments in imitation of the timber construction, giving the pagoda a richness unseen in masonry structures in former periods. (Figure 13)
From the latter half of the fourteenth century to the first decade of the present century, there were only two dynasties and they both succeeded in maintaining their regimes for a comparatively long duration. The Ming Dynasty drove away the Mongols and reestablished a regime of Han rulers. It was an age of national revival. The Yuan capital Dadu was sacked and a new capital was built in Nanjing. But only thirty years later, the capital was moved to Peking, utilizing the greater part of the destroyed Dadu. The Qing Dynasty, established by the Manchus, inherited Peking almost intact. For more than five centuries, Peking was twice enlarged and survived without going through any large scale destruction. The city,with its palaces and parks, stands as the most important monument of this period.
Every newly founded dynasty brought along with it a redistribution of land and a rise in production and consequently greater building activity. The first hundred years or so of both these dynasties were periods of comparative peace and prosperity. All kinds of handicraft were brought to ever higher perfection. All these factors found expression in the architecture of the time. Both the Ming and Qing Dynasties left to posterity innumerable buildings, some still standing today in perfect state of preservation. Unlike the earlier periods, dwelling houses of the ordinary people have also been preserved.
Needless to say, the Imperial Palaces of Peking, first laid out and built in the early part of the fifteenth century and renovated, some even completely rebuilt, in later ages, as a group, stand one of the most magnificent ensemble created by any architect of any time. (Figures 14, 15)
“多层”和“多檐”仍然是佛塔体量和轮廓处理方面主要的两个类型。八角形的平面布局产生了纤细修长、光影重重的效果。整体而言，这一时期的佛塔更加精致典雅。有一些较为保守，比例恰切，装饰简约，从而达到了审美效果。但也有相当数量的佛塔模仿木结构建筑的装饰风格，这样就使砖石佛塔相较此前更加富丽华美。（图 13）
从14世纪下半叶到20世纪头十年，经历了两个朝代，且均持续了相对较长的时间。明朝赶走了蒙古人，重新建立了汉族统治，可算是民族复兴。元大都遭到劫掠，新的都城在南京兴建。但仅30年之后，明朝又迁都北京，在元大都的大部分废墟旧址上兴建新都。清朝是由满人建立的，大体沿袭了前朝北京的格局。在五个多世纪里，北京城两度扩建，免遭大肆破坏而得以保存。北京城及其宫殿苑囿，是这一阶段最重要的历史遗迹。
新建各朝之初，土地重新分配，生产力得到提升，并由此促进了建筑业的发展。这两个朝代开初的一百年左右，均是相对和平、繁荣的时期。各种手工业空前蓬勃发展。所有这些因素，在当时的建筑中都得以展现。明清两代留下来不胜枚举的建筑，有些至今仍得到完好保存。和前期不同，这一时期的一些民居也被保存下来。
14
毋庸置疑，开始设计并营造于15世纪早期、其后又整修甚至重建的故宫建筑群，是任何时期、任何建筑师能建造出的最宏伟壮丽的建筑作品之一。（图 14，15）
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Mansions of nobilities and high officials as well as dwellings of the common people, some built four or five centuries ago, still stand in good condition. Compared to remains of earlier periods, religious buildings are found to be of less importance. Parks and gardens several hundred years old still give pleasure to the mass of people in their time of leisure. (Figures 16, 17) Even tombs of emperors, pompous ensembles, magnificently laid out and originally surrounded by groves of evergreens, have become favorite weekend resorts. (Figures 18, 19)
许多达官贵族的宅邸，乃至普通民居，四五百年后依然保存得相当完好。宗教建筑，与早期遗存的建筑相比，则相形式微。具有数百年历史的各种园林景区，仍是公众休闲游乐的好去处。 （图 16，17） 不少皇帝陵墓，修建得十分华丽壮观，气势恢宏，周围绿树成荫，蕴含有“万年长青”之寓意；也已成为最受欢迎的周末游览胜地。（图 18，19）
20
From the architecture of this period, we see most clearly the marked class imprint of the social system. From the palaces and mansions to the houses of the ordinary well-to-do, besides the spacious, comfortable quarters for the “masters and mistresses,” without exceptions there are “servants’ quarters,” a miniature slum attached to every house. Nevertheless, they are still much better than the real slums of the masses of city poors. (Figures 20, 21)
From the plans, especially those of ensembles built in strict accordance with the official regulations, there is found the traditional preference for symmetrical arrangements. But one conspicuous characteristic is that when two or more groups of quadrangular courtyards are put adjacent to each other, there is an almost complete lack of correlation between the major axes of the groups which are parallel to each other. In places away from Peking, especially in the dwellings of the working people, great liberty is taken so as to arrange the houses to meet the demands of work and living.
Certain changes in construction details influenced to a considerableextent the general proportions of the buildings. The beam is brought into more direct contact with the column. To counteract the shearing stress, the width of the beam is increased to a dimension wider than the diameter of the column and placed directly on top of it. Even when the dougong is used, it is used merely as a “cushion,” although still functioning as a weight bearing unit, but primarily for decorative purposes. On account of this, the size of the dougong, in proportion to the height of the building, is very much reduced, and the overhang of the eave becomes less far. Thus the buildings of this stage of development, especially those of the Qing Dynasty, present an appearance so restrained that it looks almost rigid when in comparison with the earlier buildings.
21
我们可从这一时期保存下来的建筑中清楚地看出，在当时的社会体制下，阶级划分的明显痕迹。从宫殿宅邸到小康民居，除供老爷和夫人使用的宽敞舒适的上房、正房外，无一例外都附有简陋的（倒座或鹿顶）平房供仆役使用。不过，这些仆役居室的条件仍远远优于广大城市贫民的栖身之所。（图 20，21）
在平面布局上，尤其是严格遵循官方规制的建筑组群，可以看出对对称布局这一形法传统的偏好。但还有一个显著的特点，即两组或多组四合院毗连时，这些庭院的主轴彼此平行，但其间几乎没有任何关联。在北京以外的地方，尤其是劳动人民的聚居地区，房屋布局视劳作和居住的需要而定，非常自由随意。
建筑细节上的某些改变，在很大程度上影响了建筑的整体比例。横梁更直接地与立柱相连。为了抵冲剪应力，横梁的宽度扩展得比柱径还要宽，并直接置于柱顶。即便是斗拱派上用场，也只是作为建筑中的一个“枕垫”；尽管仍然起着承重作用，但主要是装饰性的用途了。因此，斗拱的尺寸就建筑高度的比例而言大幅减小了，屋檐的外悬出檐部分也大幅缩水。这样一来，这一阶段尤其是清朝的建筑，和以往的相比，造型上较为拘谨，甚至几乎显得刻板了。
The nineteenth century was an epoch of profound changes in the history of China. Capitalism and imperialism brought the West to China, and along with it, Western architecture. New methods of construction, new architectural styles, new ways of using buildings, etc., etc., in short, an entirely new conception of architecture was introduced. In some coastal cities, where the imperialists acquired “concessions,” even the city of the nineteenth-century Europe was reproduced.
The Qing Dynasty was overthrown in 1911 and a republic was founded. For a quarter of a century, China was torn by successive wars between the “warlords” and then eight years’ war against the Japanese invaders. It was also in these years that Marxism-Leninism was introduced into China and eventually led to the formation of the Chinese Communist Party and finally the founding of the People’s Republic in 1949.
The architecture of the first half of the twentieth century in China mirrored most faithfully the height of semi-feudalistic and semi-colonial state of Chinese society. In the countries and in the smaller towns, the traditional Chinese building is still the people’s choice. But in the larger cities, especially in the so-called “treaty ports,” the “foreign-style house” is the mode. Eclecticism, including the so-called “Chinese style” was the vogue for three decades or so, followed by a high tide of “contemporary architecture.”
It was in such a state that the architects of China found themselves when China was liberated in 1949.
In 1949, the Chinese people liberated themselves from the bondage of more than two thousand years of feudalism and a century of imperialism and founded the People’s Republic of China. Architecture immediately became the common affair of the entire populace. As soon as the period of economic recovery, from 1949 to 1952, is over, with the generous help of the Soviet Union and the people’s democratic countries, the reconstruction work under the First Five-Year Plan was launched forward. Numerous new industrial towns have been planned and started building. Certainly many more will be planned and built in the future. Reconstruction plans for many of the old cities are also gradually taking shape.
19世纪是中国发生深刻变化的历史时期。资本主义和帝国主义使西学东渐，也带来了西洋建筑，包括新的建筑方法、新的建筑风格、新的建筑功用等等。简而言之，引入了全新的建筑理念。一些中国沿海城市，在帝国主义者得到“特许”的“租界”中，甚至复制了不少19世纪欧洲的城市建筑。
1911年，清朝政府被推翻，民国建立了。此后的四分之一个世纪，中国饱受“军阀”混战之苦，后又经历了八年抗日战争。也正是在这一时期，马列主义被带进了中国，中国共产党成立了，并最终于1949年建立起了中华人民共和国。
20世纪上半叶的中国建筑如实地反映了中国半殖民地半封建社会鼎盛时期的风貌。在田间乡下和小城小镇，传统中国建筑仍然是人们的选择。但在较大的城市，尤其是在所谓的“通商口岸”，“洋房”甚为时髦。大约三十来年间，包括所谓“中式风格”在内的折中主义建筑蔚然成风，随后则是“当代建筑”的盛行时期。
1949年中国解放时，建筑师们正是处于这样一种历史背景之中。
1949年，中国人民从两千年多的封建主义和一个世纪的帝国主义束缚中解放出来，建立了中华人民共和国。建筑很快成为全体民众的共同事业。1949年到1952年的经济恢复时期刚一结束，在苏联和人民民主国家的慷慨相助下，随即开始了第一个“五年计划”，开展重建工作。无数新兴的工业城市开始进行规划兴建，当然，还有更多的要在未来进行规划和建造。很多古城的重建计划正在逐渐形成。
The Chinese people are at present endeavoring with all their effort to have their four-thousand-year-old agricultural country basically industrialized in the short span of three Five-Year Plans. For the realization of this historical task, architects and engineers of China are offering every ounce of their strength
Many old cities have changed considerably. New cities are planned and old cities, replanned. Workers’ homes and dormitories are built in unprecedented numbers and with great speed, but they still lag behind the need of the people. Plans for residential buildings and certain public and office buildings have been worked towards the direction of standardization since 1953. A considerable number of hotels were built to accommodate the increasing number of visitors to various cities.
Public buildings of diverse nature, from government offices to department stores, etc., constitute none too small a part of the architects’ work. The great number of educational buildings, from nurseries to institutions of high education, testifies the great attention the People’s Government is paying to the education of the next generation. Hospitals and sanitariums are also built for the health of the great mass of workers, while the number of theaters, palaces of culture, clubs, exhibition galleries, gymnasium, etc., is also considerable.
Needless to say, the one field in building activities that ranks in supreme prominence is that of industry. It is in this field that the Chinese architects found themselves face to face with entirely new problems. The state of industrial development under the reactionary regimes offered hardly any opportunity for the architects to practice in industrial architecture. But with the help of architects from the Soviet Union and other people’s democratic countries, Chinese architects not only have learned, but are now able and competent designers in this particular field.The problems facing the Chinese architects are complex and difficult. To plan and build to answer the demands of socialism and of the great masses of working people is no simple task, but, under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, with the guiding principles of MarxismLeninism, and, with the inexhaustible strength and wisdom of the working people, the Chinese architects are filled with self-confidence tha they will create an architecture that is socialist in nature and endowed with national characters.
Having made a brief review of the stages of historical development of Chinese architecture, we shall now proceed with the examination of some of the representative specimens.
中国人民目前正在竭尽全力，力争在短短的三个“五年计划”的时间之内，将这个拥有四千年历史的农业大国基本实现工业化。为了实现这一历史任务，中国的建筑师和工程师正在贡献自己的全部力量。
很多古城已经大为改观。新城市正在规划，旧城市则在重新规划。以前所未有的数量和速度修建了不少工人住宅和宿舍，但依旧不能满足人民的需求。1953年以来，民用住宅、公共建筑和办公建筑正朝着标准化的方向进行规划。大批酒店已经建成，以满足各个城市不断增长的游客的需求。
种类不同的公共建筑，从政府办公室到百货公司等，在建筑师的工作中也占据着不小的分量。兴建的从幼儿园到大学的大量教育建筑，体现了人民政府对下一代教育的重视。医院和疗养院为广大劳动人民而建造，而剧院、文化宫、俱乐部、展览馆以及体育馆等的数量也很可观。
无需多言，建筑活动中最重要的就是工业建筑。正是在这一领域，中国的建筑师发现自己遇到了全新的问题。反动政府统治之时，工业发展完全没有为建筑师修建工业建筑创造任何机会。但是，有了苏联和其他人民民主国家同行的帮助，中国建筑师不仅学会了方法，还成为了这一特殊领域能干的设计师。中国建筑师遇到的问题是复杂和困难的。设计和建造符合社会主义和广大劳动人民需要的建筑，绝非易事。但是，有了中国共产党的领导，有了马列主义的指导原则，有了劳动人民无穷无尽的力量和智慧，中国的建筑师们满怀信心，一定能够兴建兼具社会主义与民族特色的建筑大业。
简要回顾了中国建筑发展的历程之后，我们可再来审视一些具有代表性的实例。
As mentioned above, the principles for laying out the capital city of a ruling king or emperor were specified as early as the eleventh century BC.In the Zhouli or Book of Rites , in the chapter “Kaogong Ji” which narrates the work of crafts, is mentioned that the capital of a king should be “nine li [7] square with nine boulevards running longitudinally and nine boulevards running latitudinally. The longitudinal boulevards should be the width of nine carriages. The palaces should be located in front and the market places,at the rear; the ancestral temple to the left and the temple of the god of lands to the right.”
In this simple statement, the basic principles are precisely put down. It is a faithful testimony of the social and political systems of the early days of feudalism. The lord was supreme. His palaces must be put in the center-front. The two temples to the left and right were to stand as permanent proclamations to his noble lineage of decent and indisputable right of sovereignty. The market places, which were the only places for the common people, logically, were located in the least important quarter.
It is interesting to note that this principle was not strictly adhered to in earlier days, such as the Chang’an of the Han Dynasty. It was not until the time when the teachings of Confucius were proclaimed by the feudal rulers as state teachings and the Zhouli included into the Thirteen Classics that the planning of an emperor’s capital was given such ritual considerations.
The Chang’an of the Sui and Tang Dynasties was the first and largest city in the history of China that was planned and built, with certain modifications, on the principle specified in the Zhouli. Though completely destroyed at the end of the Tang Dynasty (beginning of the tenth century), exact and minute descriptions by an early Song author and recent researches enable us to have a fairly accurate plan of the city as it existed before destruction. It was a rectangular city completely surrounded by walls on all sides, with three gates on each side. Streets were laid out like a chessboard, with the principal streets in line with the gates. The central part of the northern portion of the city was the Palace City within which were the palaces of the emperor.
如前所言，公元前11世纪就已经明确提出了帝王所在都城的规划原则。《周礼·考工记》，即专门描述工艺之术的章节中，讲到了都城应“方九里，（旁三门，）国中九经九纬，经涂九轨，左祖右社，面朝后市”[8]。
这一简单的语句精确地阐述了基本的规划原则，并如实反映了封建社会初期的社会关系及政治体系。封建领主有着至高无上的权力，因此其宫殿必须位于正前方正中央的位置。[9]左右两庙象征着王室世系相传的高贵血统及毋庸置疑的统治权威。与平民百姓唯一有关的“市”，自然占据最不重要的位置。
有意思的是，早期规划帝王之都时这些原则并未得以严格的遵循，比如汉朝的长安城就是这样。直到孔子的儒家学说被封建统治者确立为官方学说并且将《周礼》列入“十三经”之后，对国都建设的规划，才开始有了礼制性的考量。
隋朝和唐朝的都城长安，是中国历史上第一座同时也是最大的一座根据《周礼》的礼制营造原则规划建成的都城，当然也作了些变通。虽然唐朝末年（10世纪初）都城被毁，但是根据宋初某位作家精确而细致的描述和最新的研究发现，我们能够相当准确地了解到长安城被毁前的规划设计。 该城为长方形，四周完全被城墙包围，各面开三座城门。街道格局如同棋盘般区划整齐，主道贯穿城门。城北中央是宫城，即皇帝的宫殿所在地。
To the south of this was the Imperial City, where the ministries of the government were located. Surrounding the Imperial City on three sides was the fang, each also surrounded by walls with a gate on each side and with crossroads within. To the left and right and slightly in front of the Imperial City were two spacious market squares. At the southeastern corner of the city was a “green area” with attractive natural sceneries. It was a favorite resort for the rich and poor alike and had inspired many poets who immortalized the place through their verses.
All the common people lived in the walled fang or blocks, the gates of which would be locked as soon as the “evening drum” was beaten. Hence all residents must be home before that time. Only officials abov a certain rank were permitted to open their gates facing the principal streets and had the right of way night and day. The basic conception of the city of Chang’an is a congregation of small cities surrounded by wall to form a big city. The small cities—fang—were separated and connected to each other by major and minor arterial streets. Such arrangements and restrictions mirrored the policy of discouragement of commerce, for no shop was permitted to open onto the principal streets. The street scene of the Chang’an during the Tang Dynasty must have been rather austere. However, official restrictions could not bind social and economical progress forever. By the tenth century, the walls of the fang were broken through and shops were built facing the streets. The street scene in the Chinese city took up an entirely new and different appearance
On the site where Peking, the capital of the People’s Republic of China, stands today, a town or settlement have been in existence as far back as the Yin Dynasty (1765 BC–1122 BC). After having sacked the capital of the Jin Dynasty, Yanjing, which had grown up through nearly thirty centuries of development, Kublai Khan of the Mongols ordered the building of a new capital just to the northeast of it, called Dadu, the “Great Capital” and known as Khanbaliq in Marco Polo ’ s Travels . It was planned according to the principle set in the Zhouli —the palace in the front, the market place at the rear, the ancestral temple to the left and the temple of the god of lands to the right. But Dadu suffered the same fate as that of Yanjing when the Mongols were driven out by the Han people who established the Ming Dynasty in 1368.
宫城之南是皇城，即行政官署所在地。皇城的三面外围均为坊，各坊四面又有围墙，城墙上各有一门，内有出入通路。皇城左侧、右侧及略偏南边，为两个面积宽敞的集市区。 [10] 长安城的东南角是有着秀美景色的“绿色园林区”，不但为贫富世人共爱，而且激发了不少文人骚客的诗兴，从而使此地不朽于世。
所有的平民都居住在坊内，坊门在“暮鼓”敲响之时便会锁上。因此，所有居民必须在此之前赶回家中。只有朝廷百司一定级别以上的官员才能将府门开向主街道，并享有不分昼夜均可通行的特权。长安城的基本建设理念，是由畦分棋布的、内向性封闭的小城围合聚拢而成一个大城的格局。小城即指“坊”，由大小主干道相隔相连。这种排列规整的布局及其限制作用，禁止在大街上开设商铺，体现了当时的禁商政策。唐朝那时的长安街道，一定非常俭朴无华。然而，官方的限制不能永久地阻挡社会和经济的进步。到公元10世纪时，各坊城墙被打破，店面朝街而开。当时中国的城市街景，呈现出一副截然不同的全新面貌。
中华人民共和国现在的首都北京城，始建于殷商时期（公元前1765─公元前1122年）。在蒙古可汗忽必烈攻占劫掠金朝的首都燕京（已有几近三千年历史）后，他下令在燕京的东北方向建立了一座新的都城，称为“大都”，取“伟大的都城”之义，而在《马可·波罗游记》中被称为“可汗大都”。该城依据《周礼》的原则规划，即“左祖右社，面朝后市”。而当汉人于1368年将蒙古人逐出中原并建立明朝之后，大都也遭遇了和燕京类似的被洗劫的命运。
Shortly afterwards, the ruined capital was reconstructed and renamed Beijing, the North Capital, known to Westerners as Peking. It has been, except for two short intervals, the capital of China ever since. The Peking up till the liberation in 1949, as the capital of an absolute monarchy, took its final shape in the year 1553, after three successive large-scale alterations. The reconstruction in 1553 added an “outer city” to the original square city, thus lengthened the principal axis of the city to eight kilometers. The composition of the entire city was basically symmetrical.The street system was laid out with that of the Mongol city as basis. Th chessboard main streets divide the city into large “super-blocks,” within which most of the minor streets run in the east-west direction. This “fis bone” pattern of street system defines clearly the different functions of the major and minor streets on the one hand and enabled all the houses to have a southern exposure on the other. The planner had shown great ingenuity in the creation of such a system.
The string of natural lakes in the heart of the city did not embarrass the planner. The effect of symmetry in the street system was by no mean destroyed. On the contrary, he made the best use of the irregular lines of the lakes to help soften the possible effect of harshness due to excessive emphasis on symmetry and succeeded in adding a touch of unexpected joy of playfulness to the majestic city. When a casual visitor who comes to Peking for the first time, after passing through streets lined with buildings on both sides and comes suddenly to the head of a bridge, he is brought, most unexpectedly, face to face with a vast stretch of water surface, lined with such informal shorelines, and, on the slopes of the island-hill, such wooded shades of evergreens. He will be standing on or strolling over the marble bridge with exquisitely carved balustrades and enjoying the scenery composed of fairyland-like pavilions and loggias. It makes one wonder whether he is in the middle of a city of over three million inhabitants.
One of the unseen achievements of ancient Peking must not be overlooked, that is the sewage system first laid down six centuries ago.There was originally in Peking an ancient sewage system totaling more than three hundred kilometers in length, slowly built up through the centuries. Portions of it have already collapsed during the past few decades, but there are still more than two hundred kilometers of it in usable condition. After the liberation, the People’s Government drained and repaired the still usable portion of the entire system and it is now an integral and important part of the new sewage system.
不久之后，这座被毁的都城得以重建，并被重新命名为“北京”，即“北方的京城”，西方人称之为Peking。除了两个短暂的时期以外，自此北京一直是中国的首都。[11]直至1949年解放之前，北京一直是君主专制政权的都城。历经三次大规模整修之后，它最终定型于1553年——这一年的重建工作主要是在原来方城的基础上增加了“外城”，从而将城市的中轴线延长至八公里。整座城市的构造基本呈对称状。街道设计以大都为基础，格网状的主干道将城市分为大的坊区，区内多数支干道为东西向。这种鱼骨状的街道体系一方面清晰地体现了主干道和支干道的不同功能，同时也使得所有房屋都能坐北朝南。这种体系的创建，体现了设计者的匠心独具。
城中心的天然湖区（即“海子”），也没能难倒设计师。这些海子更没有破坏街道体系的对称效果。恰恰相反，设计师充分利用了它们的不规则形状，来弱化因过分强调对称而有可能导致的刻板印象，成功地为这座庄严的城市增添了意外的愉悦之感。初次造访北京城的游客穿过两侧建筑林立的街道时，突然走到了一个桥头，与他不期而遇的，是一片河岸蜿蜒的广阔水域，以及水域当中小岛斜坡上成片的绿荫。他会驻足或漫步在有着精雕细刻的汉白玉栏杆的小桥上，欣赏着如梦如幻仙境般的亭台楼阁，间或怀疑自己是否真的置身于聚居着三百多万市井居民的凡尘闹市当中。
古都北京还有一项无形的、不容忽视的成就，那就是最先在600年前建成的排水系统。数世纪来逐渐建成的老北京城的排水系统总长为三百多公里，近几十年来部分已经坍塌，但仍有两百多公里的管道在继续发挥作用。解放后，人民政府排干沟渠中的废水并修缮了依旧可用部分，如今它已成为新排水系统中不可或缺的重要组成部分。
It must be pointed out here that the entire city of Peking was planned with the emperor’s palace—the Forbidden City—as the dominant feature occupying a vast area in the center of the city, surrounded by a massive wall and a moat. It solved excellently the problem of guarding the safety of the emperor, but today it stands an insoluble problem in a modern city as an obstacle to traffi
For thousands of years, a city, regardless of its size, was seldom built without a wall. Whenever the topography permits, the city was laid out either square or rectangular, with chessboardlike road systems. But in the mountainous regions, cities were always planned and built in conformity to the terrain.
这里必须说明的一点是，整个北京城的规划基于一点，即以皇宫紫禁城为中心，它在城中央占据了很大面积，其外围是宏伟的城墙和护城河。这一设计曾成功解决了护卫皇帝安全的问题，但如今却成为现代城市中堵塞交通的难题。
中国数千年来，凡是城市，不论大小如何几乎都筑墙而建。只要地形允许，城市格局非方则长，街道格网状分布。但是在山区，城市通常则要根据地形地势规划建造。
The Emperor’s Palaces, an enormous ensemble surrounded by a massive wall, called the Purple Forbidden City, are the nucleus around which the entire city of Peking was planned. The Forbidden City has within its enclosure numerous ensembles with a total of several hundred buildings, including halls of audience, offices for government administration, secretariats, living quarters for the emperor and his enormous family, living quarters for the army of courtiers and court ladies, kitchens, stables and other service quarters for the entire court. There are also in the precinct the emperor’s private Buddhist chapel, libraries, art galleries and gardens. All these buildings for different purposes are arranged in numerous ensembles, each consisted of several courtyards. Almost every building is roofed with yellow glazed tiles. The walls are all painted red and the shaded portions under the eaves of the buildings are decorated with painted patterns in blue, green and gold. Halls and pavilions of importance, as a rule, are elevated on top of white marble terraces which are arranged into one or three tiers according to the importance of the building. Each ensemble in the Forbidden City is composed with one axis, and, as mentioned before, little attention is paid to the axes of adjacent ensembles.
巍峨高墙之内的皇家宫殿群，被称为“紫禁城”，也是整个北京城规划的核心。城内有数百座建筑，包括征召臣工觐见的大殿、奏事议政处、内廷机要用房、皇帝本人及皇室的寝宫、侍臣宫女的住所、御膳房、牲口厩以及宫廷里其他杂役的居住区域。城内还设有皇帝的专用佛堂、书房、雅玩收藏室以及御花园。这些功能不一的建筑都自成一体，每个建筑群由几个庭院构成。几乎所有建筑的屋顶都铺着黄色的琉璃瓦；城墙都刷成朱红色，檐下部分则以金黄、翠绿及碧蓝色的图案装饰。凡是重要的大殿和楼阁，通常都要建在汉白玉台阶之上。至于台阶的数目，通常是一层或三层，根据建筑的重要性而定。紫禁城中，各宫殿群均由一条中轴线贯通；但是正如此前提及，不太注意相邻宫殿群的轴线之间的关联关系。
1. Two Groups of Three Big Hall
On the principal axis of the Forbidden City are rhythmically placed in a string a double “triads” of monumental buildings, popularly known as the “Front Three Big Halls” and the “Rear Three Big Halls.” Each of the “triad” consists of one rectangular hall in the front, a square hall in the middle and another, but smaller, rectangular hall at the rear. The rear“triad” is a repetition of the front “triad” in a reduced size. Both these “triads” each as a group, is raised on a marble terrace of three tiers and surrounded by galleries, pavilions, etc. and preceded in the forefront by a monumental gateway.
The Taihe Dian or Hall of Supreme Harmony is the principal hall of audience in the palaces and focal point of the whole Forbidden City. With its six rows of twelve columns each, forming a hypostyle hall eleven bays in length and five in depth, double-eaved and hip-roofed, it is the largest single building of its kind in China. The present structure dates back no farther than 1697, being the substitute for the one destroyed by a fire in 1679. The seventy-two columns arranged in monotonous regularity, seemingly showing not much ingenuity, are yet a most impressive sight. The structure stands on a low marble platform, which in turn is elevated by three tiers of balustraded terraces, profusely decorated with the most exquisite carvings.
Compared to buildings of earlier dates, as will be seen from some examples to be cited later in this discussion, the dougong of this gigantic hall is very small in proportion. It has lost its original function as a structural unit and degenerated into mere decorations. From a distance, the presence of dougong is hardly noticeable. The walls, columns, doors and windows are painted red, the dougong and the architraves in blue and green and accentuated with gold. The whole structure is crowned by a roof of glazed yellow tiles, glistening like gold in the bright sunshine against the blue sky of North China. Elevated on the white marble terraces that seem to vibrate with their exuberant carvings, the great hall is an apparition of grandeur, dignity and gorgeousness that, once seen, is never forgotten.
Behind the Taihe Dian is the Zhonghe Dian, the Hall of Middle Harmony. It is a square, small pavilion-like structure with a pyramidal roof. Further back is the Baohe Dian, the Hall of Retained Harmony, a structure slightly smaller than the Taihe Dian that concludes the Front Triad with an appropriate rhythmic accent.
Both Triads are places for the most solemn ceremonies: the Front Triad is for audiences of the greatest importance and the Rear Triad was used exclusively for imperial nuptial ceremonies. Thus the buildings were rarely used. Their function is almost purely symbolic
1．前后“三大殿” 沿紫禁城的中轴线上，有节奏地间隔分布着两组建筑群，即通常说的“前三大殿”和“后三大殿”，各由前面的长方形宫殿、中间的正方形宫殿及后面稍小的长方形宫殿构成。后三大殿是前三大殿的缩小复制版。这两组宫殿群都位于三层汉白玉高台之上，并由廊台亭榭环绕，前方则是气势恢弘的入口通道。
太和殿是宫殿群乃至整个紫禁城中朝觐的主殿。殿内6排柱子，每排12根，其殿面阔11间，进深5间，重檐庑殿顶，它是中国现存古建筑中规模最大的殿宇。这座宫殿在1679年的火灾中被焚毁，现存的宫殿修建年代不迟于1697年。殿内72根柱子排列整齐，乍看并无创意，整体上却蔚为壮观。整个建筑位于低矮的汉白玉基座之上，基座之下是三层精雕细琢的汉白玉栏杆。
与文后将提到的早期建筑相比，在雄伟的太和殿中，斗拱的尺寸极小。它已经失去原先的构造功能，而沦为纯粹的装饰品，从远处看几乎毫不起眼。殿墙、柱子、门窗被刷成朱红色，斗拱和额枋刷成碧蓝色和翠绿色，间以鲜艳的金黄色。[12]整个建筑的屋顶铺饰着黄琉璃瓦，在北方艳阳蓝天的映衬下闪烁着熠熠金光。高踞在雕刻逼真生动的汉白玉基座之上的这座大殿，如此宏伟壮观、庄严华丽，真叫人过目难忘。
太和殿之后是中和殿。这是一座方形的亭状建筑，屋顶为攒尖形。再后方是保和殿，只比太和殿略小。这三者生动而有韵律地构成了前一组的三大殿。
前后三大殿是普天之下最庄重的礼仪之地：最重要的朝会在前三大殿举行，后三大殿则在操办皇家婚礼时方才启用。因而，它们鲜有机会使用，功能几乎只是象征性的。
2. Other Groups in the Forbidden City
To the left and right, or east and west, of the two Triads of ceremonial halls are numerous smaller ensembles within the confines of the Forbidden City. Consisted of several courtyards and surrounded by high walls, each of such an ensemble is a separate unit by itself. Such walled ensembles are “apartments” for the everyday living of members of the imperial family. To each person—an empress dowager, an empress, a concubine, a prince or a princess—or, rarely, to two or three persons is assigned such an “apartment.” Such arrangements reflect most vividly the demand imposed by the rules in court life for the highest degree of exclusiveness or isolation, not only with the outside world of common people, but even from each other of the family. The impression one gets today from these luxurious “apartments” is that they were once upon a time nothing but beautiful, gilded “cells” for the life-term imprisonment of those unfortunate blue-blooded “inmates.”
The palaces in Peking are by no means the norm exemplifying the dwelling houses of the great mass of people. In a classed society, needless to say, the best part of the working people’s labor is robbed and enjoyed by the ruling-exploiting class. So, aside from the imperial palaces, outstanding buildings in the towns and countries were usually those of the landlords, officials and well-to-do. As a rule, these dwellings are also composed of courtyards and surrounded by walls. But in different localities, under different natural conditions and social requirements as well as possibilities in technical and material supplies, great variation is found. But in the countries, especially in South China, the “orthodox” plan arrangement of courtyards and symmetry is not so strictly followed. Irregularity in planning is found everywhere. The construction also shows tendencies towards lightness.
In Peking, the average dwelling house is planned with one or several courtyards, with buildings on three or four sides. The construction is usually in strict accordance with the standards set by the Ministry of Construction in the eighteenth century. The buildings forming the quadrangle are detached from each other and so are usually arranged that they do not obstruct each other’s view or sunshine. Thus the courtyards also function as very pleasant “outdoor living rooms.”
2．紫禁城里的其他建筑群 在前后三大殿的东西两侧，分别是紫禁城里众多的小型宫殿群。每组宫殿都自成一体，各由几个庭院构成，并被高墙环绕。这些高墙之内的宫殿是皇室成员的寝宫。皇太后、皇后、嫔妃、皇子或公主都独居一间，偶尔也有两三位皇室成员共用一处的情况。这种布局安排，生动地反映了宫廷生活准则中对最高级别的特权亦或说隔离的需要，不仅体现了皇家同外界隔绝，还体现了皇亲之间的相互孤立。如今，人们从这些奢华的寝宫看出，它们历史上只是漂亮豪华的、终身禁锢着不幸有着皇家血统之人的“金丝鸟笼”。
北京城内普通大众的居所与宫殿却差之千里。在阶级社会里，劳动人民的成果无疑被统治阶级、剥削阶级掠夺和享用了。因此，除帝王宫殿之外，城里乡间耀眼的建筑通常也是那些地主、官僚及富豪的宅第。通常，这些建筑也由数个庭院构成，并被高墙环绕。但由于位于不同的地点，自然条件、社会要求及工艺和材料的限制，建筑格局上有很大的差异。但在农村，尤其是南方，正统的庭院和对称规划格局并没有得到严格遵守。不规则的构造到处可见，而营造也倾向于简洁轻巧的风格。
北京城里的普通民居包含一个或几个院落，周围三面或四面建有房屋。营造通常都严格依据了18世纪内务府内工部（后改称营造司）的规定。构成四合院的各房屋互不相连，所以通常互不遮挡视线或采光。因此，院子也担当起了宜人的“露天客厅”的作用。
In the towns and countries, less attention is paid to the formal arrangement of the buildings and to the size and shape of the courtyards. In North China, where the rainy season is short, buildings in the same ensemble are, as a rule, detached from each other like those in Peking. But in the rainy south, very often the buildings on all three or four sides of the courtyard are joined up into a continuous whole, or, when detached, connected with each other by verandas. An old residence in Shanghai is typical of this kind of arrangement.
In the North China plain, dwellings are usually only one story in height. But in certain places in the south and southwestern provinces, houses of two or three stories are quite common. The mansion of a former official in Yungding, Fujian Province is an ensemble composed o buildings of different story heights. In the Province of Yunnan, as in the typical residence of Kunming, the two story height is the norm. In the latter case, the plan of the house is usually arranged into a very compact square, leaving a small courtyard in the center, while the exterior is treated with rather forbidding walls relieved with a few small windows.
It is in the farm houses in South China that one finds the highest degree of flexibility in planning. One excellent example is the former home of Comrade Mao Zedong in Xiangtan, Hunan Province. The house is located at the foot of a gentle hill, facing a pond in front. The living quarters is in the form of an asymmetrical “U,” part of it two stories in height and tileroofed, while one leg of the “U” is lower and thatch-roofed. Adjacent to the other leg is a service yard in which are located the flour mill, cow barn,pig style, etc. It is to be noticed that here the enclosed courtyard idea is completely discarded. There is neither the quadrangle nor the forbidding walls. The house is comfortably in harmony with nature and presents an appearance of cozy picturesqueness. Farm houses of this character are quite common in the regions south of the Yangzi River.
In the loess districts in North China, especially at places where the terrain is worn by nature into steep ravines, cave dwelling is quite common. The caves are usually dug horizontally into the wall or cliff o the loess like a tunnel. The interior is vaulted with brick masonry and the open end is closed by a wall with a door and a window. Cave dwellings have the advantage of being warm in the winter and cool in the summer. A “house” or family may consist of several such caves, but they are usually placed parallel to each other without interior communications.
至于小城小市和乡间郊野的建筑，更加不注重房屋合乎规格的布局及庭院的大小与形状。华北地区的雨季较短，同一组群的房屋，和北京城里的一样，通常也是互不相连的。但在雨季较长的江南地区，院子里四周的或三面的房屋是连为一体的，或者即使隔开也由走廊相连。上海的老房子就是这种格局的典型。
华北平原的民居通常是单层的。但在华南或西南诸省，却常见两三层的房子。福建省永定某位官员的府邸是由数座层高不同的房屋构成的客家土楼。至于云南典型的民居，以昆明为例，则以两层楼最为常见。其构造整体为紧凑的正方形，中间是天井，而外围则是仅有几扇小窗的高墙。
中国南方的农家院设计体现了建筑规划中最大程度的灵活性。一个典型例子便是毛泽东同志在湖南湘潭的故居。它位于起伏和缓的小山脚下，并面朝池塘。居住房屋呈非对称的马鞍型，一侧为两层的瓦顶楼，而另一侧则为低矮的茅草屋。楼房旁边是个农家场院，里面有磨房、牛栏、猪圈等。值得注意的是，庭院围合的思想在这里完全没有体现出来，既不用四合院的形式，又没有森严的高墙环绕。整个房屋与自然非常和谐，展现出温馨生动的场景。这种类型的农家院在江南非常普遍。
在华北的黄土高原地区，尤其是地表被侵蚀成险壑的沟谷之处，窑洞便很常见。窑洞通常水平打入黄土崖壁中，有如隧道。内部用砖石砌成拱顶，出入口的那堵墙有门有窗。窑洞有冬暖夏凉的好处。一家可由几个这样的窑洞构成，但通常窑洞并排，之间并不打通相连。
Cave Temples
The earliest remains of Buddhist architecture existing in China today are the cave temples. Unquestionably the conception was imported from India, having its prototypes in Karli, Ajanta and elsewhere in India. Although rock-cut tombs were already hewn during the Han Dynasty, possibly shortly after the beginning of the Christian era, and some of them given architectural treatment, nevertheless they were used exclusively for the dead. Although cave dwellings, like those just mentioned above, undoubtedly were in use even before the hewing of the rock-cut tombs, yet they made no pretension for monumentality. It was not until the arrival of the Indian idea that the cave ascended to architectural prominence.
In the middle of the fourth century AD, Buddhist believers started hewing caves as places for worship, and the practice was continued till the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644). The high tide was reached during the Northern Wei, Northern Qi, Sui and Tang Dynasties, from the middle of the fifth to the later part of the ninth centuries, assuming the scale of a nationwide “movement” of great popularity. It was only during the earlier years, approximately up till the middle of the seventh century, that the caves were treated architecturally. Gradually the idea of opening up a cave was replaced by that of carving niches on the rock cliffs and became mere objects of sculpture. Architecturally speaking, the most important caves are those at Dunhuang, Gansu Province, Yungang, Shanxi Province, the Maiji Mountains, Tianshui, Gansu Province, Tianlong Shan, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province and Xiangtang Shan, Cixian, Hebei Province.
In most of these caves, with the exception of the last mentioned, the architectural treatment show surprisingly little influence form India and the architecture is essentially Chinese. The only noticeable indications of foreign influence are the concept of the caves itself and the Greco-Buddhist motifs in the ornaments, such as the acanthus leaf, the egg-and-dart, the swastika, the garland, the bead, etc. These motifs have enriched, and have since taken theirpermanent positions in, the vocabulary of Chinese ornamental motifs.
The architecture of these caves may be studied from two aspects: firstly, the caves themselves, including the architectural treatment of the exterior and interior; and, secondly, contemporary timber and masonry architecture depicted in the reliefs decorating the walls of the caves. Among the latter are depicted numerous halls and pagodas, replicas of the structures that once rose in great numbers all over the plains and hills of North and Central China.
佛窟
中国如今尚存的最早佛教建筑是佛窟。这种理念当然是从印度引进的，其原型如印度的卡尔利、阿旃陀及其他处的佛窟。汉朝时，可能是公元纪年开始后不久，已有石刻的墓穴，其中一些也有人工营造处理的痕迹，但都是为逝者而建。如前所提，尽管窑洞在石刻墓穴出现之前就已存在了，但当时却没有张扬。直到印度佛教的思想传入之后，石窟才上升到建筑的高度。
4世纪中期，佛教徒开始为宗教信仰而开凿洞窟，这一举措一直延续到明朝（公元1368—1644年）；从5世纪中叶至9世纪末，即在北魏、北齐、隋朝以及唐朝等朝代达到高潮，在全国掀起了大规模的信佛造佛“运动”。但也只是在约至7世纪中期之前的早期，洞窟的建筑风格才有所讲究。之后，在崖壁上雕刻的佛龛逐渐取代了向内开凿的洞窟，并发展成为纯粹的雕塑的创作对象。从建筑角度上讲，最重要的石窟是甘肃省的敦煌石窟、山西省的云冈石窟、甘肃天水的麦积山石窟、山西太原的天龙山石窟以及河北磁县的响堂山石窟。
除上段提到的最后一个响堂山石窟之外，这些石窟的建筑风格很少体现印度的影响，而主要是中国风格。唯一明显受到外国影响的标志，便是石窟的概念本身以及饰品中的希腊—佛教图案，例如莨苕叶纹饰、卵锚饰、万字饰、花环纹饰、串珠纹饰等。这些图案丰富了中国装饰图案的语汇，并自此占据了永久性的地位。
这些石窟的建筑手法，可从两方面加以研究：首先是石窟本身，包括外部和内部的建筑处理；其次是装饰石窟墙体用的浮雕所描绘的同时期的木材及石材建筑。后者包括所绘大殿和佛塔，摹仿了曾经风靡于华北平原和华中山区的建筑风格。
These caves have preserved in stone faithful copies of the wooden architecture of their time. Among the salient characteristics we notice that the columns in most cases are octagonal, with capitals in the shape of a dou (the block in the dougong). Above the capital is placed the architrave, which, in turn, is to receive the principal dou of the set of dougong. This arrangement was in later ages modified by mortising th architrave directly onto the upper end of the column, thus making the dou on the column to function at the same time as the principal dou of the set of dougong.
In the architectural treatment of these caves, the element most informative to posterity is the presentation of the timber construction in stone carving. Here we notice that the dougong is ever the dominant decorative feature. The aesthetic potentialities of the structural system were by this time so much…
这些石窟忠实地保留了当时的木质建筑的风格。我们注意到的最明显的特点，便是柱头呈斗状的八边形立柱的运用。在柱头之上是过梁，用来承托斗拱中的主斗。这一组配方式后来经过修改，用榫将过梁与柱头直接联系起来。这样，柱头的斗状部分就类似于斗拱中斗的构件而且发挥着同样的作用。
这些石窟的建筑处理对后世最大的意义，在于以石雕形式再现了木结构建筑的风格。我们在此注意到，斗拱始终主要起着装饰性的作用。这一构件体系此时已充分显示出其美学蕴涵 ……
（郑文博 任小玫 译 曾俊伟 校）