Bell Tower (钟楼) |
Travel in Shaanxi | |||
Standing at the crossing of the East, West, South, and North avenues in city proper, the Bell Tower has been a symbol of Xi' an. It 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. There is a huge bell hanging on the roof of the tower which was traditionally used to tell the time by and there are other, smaller bells on exhibit in the tower too. It is 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. Now the big iron Jinglong Bell on the Bell Tower was made in Ming Dynasty and it weighs 2,500 kilograms. It has given time to the city for more than 400 years. Nowadays, the clear and loud time-given sound on the tower in Xi'an, was the recording sound of that bell. Legends and anecdotes The forefather of Ming Dynasty named Zhuyuanzhang was born poorly and his parents passed away early. He depended on tending sheep for others when he was very little. When he grew up, he left home and became a monk. When he became the emperor, he was afraid that the real emperor ("dragon son of heaven"-means king send from heaven, dragon is the symbol of emperor) in the country somewhere will fight for the throne with him. He then ordered to build the bell towers to suppress the "dragon power". Xi'an was the emperor city in ancient times and it was the place of emperor's throne and the "dragon power" was very strong of course. Zhuyuanzhang was afraid, so the Bell Tower in Xi'an was built not only early, but also very tall. Musical performances are held inside from 09:00 to 11:30 and 14:30 to 17:30 . It is entered through the underpass on the north side. Opening Hour: 8:30am-9:30pm May-Nov, 8:30am-6:00pm Dec-Feb
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