Tiananmen Square (Beijing, China) : Central part of the square with light/speaker poles, looking north to Tiananmen Gate, across Chang'an Avenue

Creator:
Unknown
Published/Created:
Bounded on the north by Chang'an Avenue, Beijing, Beijing Shi, municipality, China
1958-1959 (alteration); 1976 (alteration); begun 1651
Physical Description:
550 yd (width) x 960 yd (length)
Date Depicted:
6/5/2009
Materials:
paving; stone
Notes:
The old Imperial City (and Forbidden City within it) lies to the north of the Gate of Heavenly Peace (Tianan men) and the Square of Heavenly Peace (Tiananmen Square) at the center of the city, on the central north-south axis. Tiananmen Square was designed and built in 1651, and has since been enlarged to four times its original size. The largest expansion was in 1958-1959 to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of the People's Republic of China; the Great Hall of the People and the National Museum of China were built on the enlarged square. The south of the square is bounded by the old Zhengyangmen gatehouse, better known as Qianmen. The year after Mao's death in 1976, a Mausoleum was built near the site of the former Gate of China (destroyed 1954), on the main north-south axis of the square. In connection with this project, the square was further increased in size to become fully rectangular and to accommodate 600,000 persons. It is the third largest square in the world at 109 acres.
Variant Titles:
Square of Heavenly Peace
Topics:
Architecture -- China -- 20th century -- (YVRC)
Period/Style:
Qing dynasty, 1644-1912
Twentieth century
Culture:
Chinese
Accession Number:
1A2-CH-B-FC-TS-A8
Genre:
architecture (AAT)
open spaces: squares (AAT)
Format:
Image
Content Type:
Sculptures, Models, & Architecture
Rights:
Copyright Scott Gilchrist, Archivision, Inc
The use of this image may be subject to the copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) or to site license or other rights management terms and conditions. The person using the image is liable for any infringement.
Access Restrictions:
Yale Community Only
Digital:
open spaces; squares (open spaces)
Source Creator:
Gilchrist, Scott
Source Title:
Archivision Addition Module Eight
Source Created:
2878 Chamonix, Montreal QC
Archivision, Inc.
6/5/2009 12:00:00 AM
Source Note:
Purchase, Visual Resources Collection, May, 2013; photographer Scott Gilchrist
Yale Collection:
Visual Resources Collection
Digital Collection:
Visual Resources Collection
Local Record Number:
4654
OID:
10900368
PID:
digcoll:1855069