Introduction: Beyond the forbidden city; Genesis of Chinese buildings and cities; Architecture of the First Emperor and his predecessors; Han architecture; And age of turmoil: three kingdoms, two jins ...

Access to this vast complex of grand palaces, abundant gardens, and sacred pavilions was off limits to most of imperial China's people, who could only imagine the grandeur beyond the gates. Hall of ...

More than 83 dynasties rose and fell over the course of imperial China’s two-millennia-long history, yet hardly any of the hundreds of palaces they built still stand today. This is in large part ...

Though Jingdezhen in Jiangxi province was the major production base for imperial-use ceramics, some porcelain pieces were ...

To understand a nation’s culture, start by looking at its architecture — those solid structures standing on the land conceal the most vivid historical memories and philosophical codes. To help global ...

One hopes Gui Youguang, a 16th-century Chinese bureaucrat, knew how to enjoy success in the moment. By the standards of the time, he was old when he passed the Ming dynasty’s most exacting grade of ...

For over 1300 years, anyone who wanted to become a civil servant in imperial China had to pass the same exam, the keju. The gruelling tests were an egalitarian route to officialdom, but critics say ...

American art historian sets the record straight on Western misinterpretations of China and its culture Martin Powers, professor emeritus at the University of Michigan, is a renowned art historian and ...