 Bell Tower
钟楼
On the busy streets in City of Xi'an, there is an ancient structure. In early morning of ancient times it had the mission of ringing the bell and giving the correct time to the whole city, called "The Bell Tower". This day-after-days time-given Bell Tower went through many dynasties. This tower became the symbol of Xi'an, ever since the date it was build. Due to its old age, many legends and anecdotes about the Bell Tower had been pass on from ancient times.
The Bell Tower was build in 1384, at first it lies in the center of Xi'an City. In 1582, the city when through an expansion so the location of the Bell Tower changed. It than is situated towards the westside of the city. People then pulled down the original bell tower and rebuilt a bell tower in the center of expanded city and it is at the location now.
The tower base is square and it covers an area of 1,377 square meters. It is 8.6 meters high and 35.5 meters wide and built completely with green bricks. The tower is a brick and timber structure and 36 meters high.
There are three layers of eaves on the external carved beams and internal is up and down layers. There are tops on four of the corners of the tower eaves. The engraved arcs under each eaves come with color designs. The arc is one of the specialties in ancient timber constructions. It is unique in the history of world construction. It not only make the construction firm, but also make it more beautiful.
The arc has already appeared in the construction of Shang Dynasty, you can find the complete arc patterns on the utensil patterns of Shang bronze ware.
Before the Bell Tower moved, there was a copper bell in the tower named "Jingyun Bell". Its sound can spread several kilometers. No matter from the shape, the sound, or the engraving technology of the bell reflected the high craftsmanship of the metallurgy of Tang Dynasty. After the Jinglong Bell moved with the Bell Tower, the Jingyun Bell was preserved in the Beilin museum of Xi'an. |
