Ancient Chinese architecture is not only a sou rce of reference for modernChinese design, but its cultural heritage has also had an international influ—ence and attracted global attention. Appreciating ancient Chinese architec-ture can be likened to opening up an enormous history book. The legends ofremote antiquity speak of the great military achievements of the Qin emperor, the noble spi rit of the Tang Dynasty, the palace intrigues of the Ming Dynasty, not to mention the wisdom and intelligence of the millions of ordinary laborersthat are neglected by the history books；all of their images are vividly re-corded therein.

Preface

Ancient Cities

Capital Cities

Provincial Cities

Military Defense

The Supreme Imperial Power

Imperial Palaces

Temples and Altars

Imperial Mausoleums

The Palaces of Gods

Confucian Architecture

Buddhist Architecture

Taoist Architecture

Islamic Architecture

Christian Architecture

Appreciation of Chinese Gardens

Imperial Gardens

Private Gardens

Vernacular Dwellings

Beijing Siheyuan Building (Courtyard Houses

Northwestern Cave Dwelling

Huizhou Dwellings

Upland Dwellings in Sichuan-Chongqing Region

Earthen Houses of Fujian

The Mongolian Yurt

Xinjiang's Aywang

Tibetan Stone Houses

The Bamboo Houses of Dai Ethnic Group in Yunnan

When East Met West

Western Influences on Chinese Architecture

The New National Formalism Architecture

Towards a New Architecture

Appendix: Chronological Table of the Chinese Dynasties