王贵祥所著的《北京天坛(英文版)》是一部有关天坛的普及读物，在满足建筑爱好者，及旅游者的需求之外，它同样是一部精研的学术专著。著作以天坛建筑群为主体叙述结构，包括建筑的布局规划、建造的过程、空间意境的营造、神性的表达和象征意义，还有天坛的历史由来，以及朝代更替，所带来的天坛整体，乃至各个局部的变化。全书资料翔实细致，用典很多，但并不晦涩，无论是艺术还是史料的典故，都可以说恰到好处。随着阅读的深入，将进一步感受到著作丰富的文化内涵与外延，如中国古代的天崇拜与祭祀礼仪的演变过程，甚至于从中感受到中国文化乃至东方哲学的精神内核，那是有别于西方宗教的“天人合一”的信仰。

Chapter I Approaching Temple of Heaven / 2

[1] Heavenly Shrines / 4

[2] Circular Mound Altar in the Ming Dynasty and Hall of Grand Sacrifice / 16

[3] The Building Complex of Temple of Heaven in the Qing Dynasty / 26

Chapter II Heaven Worship and Southern Suburban Sacrificial Ceremonies in Ancient China / 36

[1] Heaven Worship and Rituals of the Suburban Sacrificial Ceremonies in Ancient China / 38

[2] Altars for Suburban Sacrifice in the Central Capital of Jin Dynasty and Those in Beijing during Ming and Qing Dynasties / 46

Chapter III The Origin of the Hall of Prayer- for Good Harvests / 52

[1] From the Hall of Grand Sacrifice to the Hall of Grand Worship / 54

[2] From the Traditional Mingtang to the Hall of Grand Worship in the Temple of Heaven during the Ming and Qing Dynasties / 64

[3] From Sacrifice to Houji to the Altar of Praying for Bumper Harvests and the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests / 78

Chapter IV The Circular Mound and the Temple of Heaven / 84

[1] The Ancient Circular Mound and the Origin of the Name of the Temple of Heaven / 86

[2] A Circumference of Nine li Thirty bu / 92

 The Construction of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests / 98

Introduction / 100

[1] The Base of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests and the Altar of Praying for Bumper Harvests / I06

 I. The base of the hall / 106

 II. Altar of Praying for Bumper Harvests / 108

1. Altar of Praying for Bumper Harvests / 108

2. The railings / 112

3. The steps / 116

4. The columnbase / 121

[2] The Carpentry-workBeam / 122

 I. The columns and the architraves / 122

1. Columns / 122

2. Columns in special positions / 124

3. The architraves on top of the columns / 126

4. Ties in special positions / 128

 II. The beam framework / 130

1. The beams / 130

2. The purlins and ties above the beams / 132

 III. Leigong posts, queen posts and youqiang / 133

[3] The bracket sets / 134

 1. The classification of bracket sets / 134

 2. The bracket sets at the lower eaves / 136

 3. The bracket sets at the middle eaves / 136

 4. The bracket sets at the upper eaves / 138

 5. The distinction among the brackets at the upper, middle and lower eaves of different grades / 139

[4] The roofing / 140

 1. The rafters and the roofing board / 140

 2. The mortar bed, the tiles and the tile omarnents/ 141

 3. The rooftop / 143

[5] Joinery decoration / 144

1. The decoration of the doors and windows / 144

2. The ceilings and the caisson / 146

[6] Colored Painting/ 148

1. Colored painting at the exterior eaves / 148

2. Colored painting at the interior eaves / 149

[7] Other Components / 150

1. The wall under the window / 150

2. The "sacred altar" inside the hall / 152

Chapter VI The Circular Mound Altar and Its Auxiliary Buildings / 154

[1] Evolution in shape of the Imperial Vault of Heaven / 156

[2] The Echo Wall / 178

[3] The Circular MoundAltar / 186

Chapter VII Auxiliary Buildings of the Temple of Heaven/204

[1] Hall of Imperial Zenith / 207

[2] Divine Kitchen, Divine Depot and Animal-sacrifice Pavilion / 216

[3] Hall of Abstinence / 224

[4] Office of Divine Music / 239

Chapter VIII Art and Symbolism of Architecture in the Temple of Heaven / 246

[1] Spatial Art of Architecture in the Temple of Heaven / 248

[2] Symbolic meanings of the Temple of Heaven / 262

Annex: Major events concerning sacrifice at the Temple of Heaven by the Ming and Qing emperors, and its changes / 266

List of Illustrations / 274