The "Summer Palace - Jade Belt Bridge is part of a postage stamps series commemorating the Summer Palace in Beijing, China; which was enlisted as a world heritage site by the UNESCO in 1998. The Summer Palace was built during the Qing Dynasty (17th - 20th century).[1]
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| Summer Palace - stamps series (2008) |
The Qing dynasty was known as the "last conquest regime", indicating that the conquests led by the dynasty have more or less "laid the territorial foundations of the modern Chinese nation-state"[2]. Setting aside the political implications of the Qing dynasty in the modern era, the arts scenery developed during the Qing dynasty, this ranged from the paintings to literature and even porcelain. This boom in the arts was best embodied in the Summer Palace in Beijing, where one can experience first-hand the vast gardens and beautiful scenery. However, it must be noted that the current Summer Palace is a restoration of the original one built in 1750, and that was because it was destroyed during the 1860 war.
The Summer Palace in Beijing was formerly known as the Qingyi Garden, which translates to the garden of clear ripples.[3] It is known for "its artful landscaping", which includes various "halls, towers, pavilions, bridges and pagodas", amounting to more than a hundred buildings in the palace. [4] The construction of the various buildings in the Summer Palace began in 1750 up to 1764, to serve as the "Emperor's garden retreat".[5] The palace was not merely a garden for the emperor to enjoy; on the contrary, the Summer Palace included "political and administrative, residential, spiritual and recreational functions", thus, serving multiple purposes. One of the known structures in the Summer Palace is the Jade Belt Bridge.
The Jade Belt Bridge in the Summer Palace is known for its "tall thin single arch", the construction of the bridge began in 1751 and was completed in 1764.[6] The bridge symbolizes a "link between the earth and the heaven", which the Emperor would use to reflect, as well as allow for the emperor to access the "Jade Spring Hills".[7]
"The Summer Palace in Beijing is an outstanding expression of the creative art of Chinese landscape garden design, incorporating the works of humankind and nature in a harmonious whole." UNESCO, World Heritage Convention
This is a short video show-casing the Summer Palace, enjoy!
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Sources:
[2] Rawski, Evelyn S. "Introduction." The
Last Emperors: A Social History of Qing Imperial Institutions. : University
of California Press, 1998-11-15.
[3] Siu, Victoria M.. Gardens of a Chinese Emperor: Imperial Creations of the Qianlong Era,
1736–1796, 33. Lehigh University Press, 2013.
[4] "Beijing." Britannica Academic,
Encyclopædia Britannica, 9 Dec. 2015. Accessed 4 Apr. 2018.
[6] "Beijing." Britannica Academic,
Encyclopædia Britannica, 9 Dec. 2015. Accessed 4 Apr. 2018.
"Qing dynasty." Britannica Concise Encyclopedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Britannica Digital Learning, 2017. Credo Reference. Accessed 03 Apr. 2018.
https://www.stunningchina.com/jade-belt-bridge.html
https://structurae.net/structures/jade-belt-bridge
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Further sources:
BBC Radio - Palace of Shame
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b050skcg
Before Beijing: A Rare View of China's Last Dynasty
https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2016/09/thomas-child-Qing-Dynasty-Peking-photographs/500987/
Bernhard Graf, Bridges That Changed the World.
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