Archaeological Discoveries and Studies About the Ancient Capitals

Abstract

AbstractArchaeological discoveries have proved that an ancient capital is the center of the political ruling, military instruction, economic management, and cultural and etiquette activities; it represents the core of a nation’s culture, therefore is the most important material carrier of civilization. Ancient capitals consist of city gates, palaces, ancestral temples, government offices, ritual and ceremonial buildings. The construction of the capital city follows the principle that the inner city should be in the middle of the country, while the palace stays at the center of the capital city. From centrality derives the concept of “zhong he”, i.e., the capital city and the palace should have gates on all sides, representing the “four sides” of the country that surround the center. The “zhong he” concept of culture is manifested by all the capital cities, from the Forbidden City in Beijing of the Ming and Qing dynasties to capital cities of the Yuan, Jin, Song, Sui, and Tang dynasties, such as Luoyang in the Han and Chang’an in the Western Han dynasties.KeywordsCapitalNational cultureConstruction concept