Chinese Architectural Heritage Research Articles

Development and application of artificial hydraulic lime for Chinese architectural heritage restorations

Lime is commonly employed in the restoration of historic buildings due to its strength properties, which align well with the demands of architectural heritage conservation. However, recent shortages in high-quality limestone raw materials and the commercial inclusion of finely ground limestone powder in hydrated lime powder have led to significant challenges. These include low initial strength, pronounced shrinkage and cracking, and poor resistance to frost. Although natural hydraulic lime (NHL) offers moderate strength, its high cost presents an obstacle to widespread use in architectural heritage restoration. Three types of artificial hydraulic lime (AHL) — AHL1, AHL2, and AHL3 — were prepared with the objective of low cost and easy scalability. These were formulated by incorporating white cement (WC), blast furnace slag powder (BFSP), heavy calcium carbonate powder (HCCP), and industrial-grade white sugar (WS) into industrial-grade hydrated lime powder (IHLP). To align the setting time of the AHLs with the requirements of traditional builders, WS was incorporated as a retarding agent. The addition of WC, BFSP, and HCCP to IHLP resulted in enhancements over IHLP in several key aspects: compressive strength, pore structure post-hardening, dry shrinkage rate, and frost resistance. This approach will enhance the restoration quality of architectural heritage in China, leading to fewer repeated repairs and significant savings in manpower and material costs. Ultimately, AHL2 was applied in the restoration of the Confucius Temple, proving its efficacy and alignment with traditional construction requirements. This research provides valuable theoretical and practical insights for enhancing the preservation of architectural heritage.

The Implication of 19th Century Colonial Facade Characteristics on Residence Design in Tianjin, China

This research delves into the intricate implications of 19th-century colonial facade characteristics on residence design in Tianjin, China. As a prominent city in the early 20th century, Tianjin boasted a unique blend of foreign concessions and indigenous Chinese architectural heritage. The study aims to bridge the knowledge gap regarding the significance of colonial heritage in residence design and its cultural preservation. The research objectives encompass exploring colonial facade traits of the 19th-20th century, experimenting with their integration into modern residence design, and proposing their relevance for Tianjin's context. Tianjin's historical evolution, initially marked by its status as a treaty port shared by various nations shaped its architectural identity. The research employs a qualitative approach, involving on-site visits and photography to gather primary data from heritage buildings, both colonial-owned and those influenced by colonial aesthetics. This method facilitates a comprehensive assessment of architectural details, enabling a deep understanding of the interplay between colonial and indigenous elements. The study also employs a survey questionnaire to further investigate how colonial facade characteristics impact the residents' perceptions, motivations, and design choices. This approach enhances the analysis of intricate design decisions that link past colonial influences to contemporary residence design. Through content analysis and data triangulation, the study reveals insights into the interwoven cultural, historical, and aesthetic factors that have shaped Tianjin's architectural landscape. By bridging the gaps in understanding regarding the effects of colonial aesthetics on residence design, this research contributes to a broader discourse on architectural preservation and urban development. It underscores the importance of acknowledging and integrating colonial heritage to create a distinctive architectural narrative that captures the essence of Tianjin's rich history. Ultimately, this study enriches the discourse surrounding architectural preservation, cultural continuity, and the symbiotic relationship between past and present in urban design.

The Implication of 19th Century Colonial Facade Characteristics on Residence Design in Tianjin, China

This research delves into the intricate implications of 19th-century colonial facade characteristics on residence design in Tianjin, China. As a prominent city in the early 20th century, Tianjin boasted a unique blend of foreign concessions and indigenous Chinese architectural heritage. The study aims to bridge the knowledge gap regarding the significance of colonial heritage in residence design and its cultural preservation. The research objectives encompass exploring colonial facade traits of the 19th-20th century, experimenting with their integration in modern residence design, and proposing their relevance for Tianjin's context. Tianjin's historical evolution, initially marked by its status as a treaty port shared by various nations, shaped its architectural identity. The research employs a qualitative approach, involving on-site visits and photography to gather primary data from heritage buildings, both colonial-owned and those influenced by colonial aesthetics. This method facilitates a comprehensive assessment of architectural details, enabling a deep understanding of the interplay between colonial and indigenous elements. The study also employs a survey questionnaire to further investigate how colonial facade characteristics impact the residents' perceptions, motivations, and design choices. This approach enhances the analysis of intricate design decisions that link past colonial influences to contemporary residence design. Through content analysis and data triangulation, the study reveals insights into the interwoven cultural, historical, and aesthetic factors that have shaped Tianjin's architectural landscape. By bridging the gaps in understanding regarding the effects of colonial aesthetics on residence design, this research contributes to a broader discourse on architectural preservation and urban development. It underscores the importance of acknowledging and integrating colonial heritage to create a distinctive architectural narrative that captures the essence of Tianjin's rich history. Ultimately, this study enriches the discourse surrounding architectural preservation, cultural continuity, and the symbiotic relationship between past and present in urban design.

Digital Documentation and Conservation of Architectural Heritage Information: An Application in Modern Chinese Architecture

With the rapid advancement of technology, accurate and reliable architectural heritage information is increasingly in demand in the fields of cultural heritage and architectural conservation. This study aimed to establish a positive and harmonious relationship between architectural heritage and urban renewal in China’s sustainable urbanization process by documenting and conserving Chinese architectural heritage information. This work focuses on integrating architectural heritage information into multilevel and multi-dimensional information using scientific and standardized classification methods for documenting and conserving Chinese architectural heritage. The former site of the provisional Senate of the Nanjing National Government was studied and documented for this purpose. A precise 3D modeling for the components of architectural heritage and building information modeling (BIM) technology based on the two-dimensional (2D) drawings and component information were studied, analyzed, and used for restoration. Finally, a component “family” library was created using the common components of existing historical buildings. The results showed that the proposed method could provide both 3D and 2D drawings directly in the digital protection of historical buildings to monitor, repair, and protect architectural heritage, particularly historical buildings, throughout their life cycle. Overall, this work highlights the importance of protecting architectural heritage in sustainable urbanization and proposes an effective method for achieving this goal.

Integration of BIM and Chinese Architectural Heritage: A Bibliometric Analysis Research

The research on the application of BIM technology in architectural heritage is increasing. Building information modeling (BIM) makes the realization of architectural heritage assessment, design, and management systematic and effective. However, little is known about the use of China-based BIM in conjunction with architectural heritage. Therefore, this study conducted a systematic literature analysis to determine the application fields and development trends of BIM and architectural heritage research in China. A total of 186 articles were retrieved from CNKI, of which 167 met the inclusion criteria and formed the basis of this systematic literature analysis. With the aid of the literature research visualization analysis software VOSviewer and SATI, a comprehensive literature visualization analysis was carried out. It was determined that the hot fields of BIM research in architectural heritage in China are mainly focused on (a) the perspective of data acquisition and measurement technology, (b) the perspective of model construction based on point cloud data acquisition, and (c) the perspective of BIM model application. Future research trends may focus on the information research of architectural heritage, combined with the application of BIM technology in the whole life cycle management of architectural heritage and other aspects.

Research on Image Classification and Retrieval Using Deep Learning with Attention Mechanism on Diaspora Chinese Architectural Heritage in Jiangmen, China

The study of the architectural heritage of the Chinese diaspora has an important role and significance in China’s historical and cultural background in the preservation of cultural data, the restoration of images, and in the analysis of human social and ideological conditions. The images from the architectural heritage of the Chinese diaspora usually include frescos, decorative patterns, chandelier base patterns, various architectural styles and other major types of architecture. Images of the architectural heritage of the Chinese diaspora in Jiangmen City, Guangdong Province, China are the research object of this study. A total of 5073 images of diaspora Chinese buildings in 64 villages and 16 towns were collected. In view of the fact that different types of image vary greatly in features while there are only small differences among the features of the same type of image, this study uses the depth learning method to design the Convolutional Neural Network Attention Retrieval Framework (CNNAR Framework). This approach can be divided into two stages. In the first stage, the transfer learning method is used to classify the image in question by transferring the trained parameters of the Paris500K datasets image source network to the target network for training, and thus the classified image is obtained. The advantage of this method is that it narrows the retrieval range of the target image. In the second stage, the fusion attention mechanism is used to extract the features of the images that have been classified, and the distance between similar images of the same type is reduced by loss of contrast. When we retrieve images, we can use the features extracted in the second stage to measure the similarities among them and return the retrieval results. The results show that the classification accuracy of the proposed method reaches 98.3% in the heritage image datasets of the JMI Chinese diaspora architectures. The mean Average Precision (mAP) of the proposed algorithm can reach 76.6%, which is better than several mainstream model algorithms. At the same time, the image results retrieved by the algorithm in this paper are very similar to those of the query image. In addition, the CNNAR retrieval framework proposed in this paper achieves accuracies of 71.8% and 72.5% on the public data sets Paris500K and Corel5K, respectively, which can be greatly generalized and can, therefore, also be effectively applied to other topics datasets. The JMI architectural heritage image database constructed in this study, which is rich in cultural connotations of diaspora Chinese homeland life, can provide strong and reliable data support for the follow-up study of the zeitgeist of the culture reflected in architecture and the integration of Chinese and Western aesthetics. At the same time, through the rapid identification, classification, and retrieval of precious architectural images stored in the database, similar target images can be retrieved reasonably and accurately; then, accurate techniques can be provided to restore old and damaged products of an architectural heritage.

P-XRF for the Detection of the Elemental Content in the Glaze Layer of Chinese Glazed Tiles

ABSTRACT This study was performed to eliminate large errors during the portable X-ray fluorescence (p-XRF) analysis of elements present in the glaze layer of glazed tiles and to establish a new calibration method, namely body-glaze fitting, by using a binary linear regression model for five typical elements of Pb, Cu, Al, Si, and Mg available in the glaze layer by employing reference experimental samples. The method was used to calibrate the results of 10 glazed tile samples from four different origins and compare these calibration results with the findings of the conventional reference material method. Scientific assay validity and calibration result reliability were assessed using the laboratory methods of energy-dispersive spectroscopy mapping and energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence. Finally, the novel calibration method was confirmed to be suitable for the traceability of the glazed tiles on the basis of elemental concentrations. The results showed that the quality of body-glaze fitting calibration data was satisfactory and met p-XRF requirements for the quantitative analysis of the glazed tiles. Moreover, the calibrated data revealed the craftsmanship provenance of the glazed tiles to improve the research on the history of ancient Chinese architecture and help the restoration and protection of Chinese architectural heritage glazed tile materials.

Quantitative safety evaluation of ancient Chinese timber arch lounge bridges

The timber arch lounge bridge is a special type of Chinese architectural heritage that is widely distributed in the southern Zhejiang Province and the northern Fujian Province. The precondition of planning the preventive conservation of built cultural heritage is the reliable evaluation of the structure safety, which enables the planners or decision-makers to comprehensively understand the complex damaged situation of the bridge and figure out a grading system for the bridge safety state. This paper puts forward a universal safety evaluation method for ancient Chinese timber arch lounge bridges. Special stress is given to the weight assignments during the procedure. Moreover, following the proposed evaluation method a case study of Wenxing Bridge is conducted, which could give a better insight into the evaluating process. This study contributes to a step forward, from the qualitative cognition to the quantitative assessment, on the way of evaluating the structure safety condition of ancient Chinese timber arch lounge bridges.

Conserving the other’s heritage within Islamic society

ABSTRACT This paper aims to tackle dissonant issues involving ownership and inclusivity in the conservation of architectural heritage in Banda Aceh. The paper explores to what extent architectural heritage conservation in Peunayong can reflect inclusivity of the non-Muslim minority Chinese with the majority Islamic Acehnese. In the process, the tensions over ethnic interaction and assimilation through the practices of architectural heritage conservation and everyday life are inextricably teased out. The paper also attempts to build counter-hegemonic views drawn from a consideration of ‘heritage from below’, and to identify how local people understand heritage conservation and cultural assimilation in maintaining everyday heritage. We argue that the negotiation of dissonance in Peunayong heritage narratives is reflected in the ways the Chinese community have historically made efforts to achieve acceptance within their adopted Acehnese cultural context. While for the Acehnese, the negotiation is reflected in their long struggle to reclaim their majority status and economic place in Peunayong, and acknowledgement of Chinese architectural heritage.

A 30-year controversy over the Shanghai East China Electric Power Building: the creation and conservation of late 20th century Chinese architectural heritage*

The Shanghai East China Electric Power Building, which was completed in 1988, is widely accepted as one of the first postmodern high-rise buildings in Shanghai. Based on articles published in mass media and professional magazines, interviews with relevant stakeholders and social media debates, this paper focuses on two controversies regarding the building’s peculiar architectural form. The first occurred between 1988 and 1992, when the building’s postmodern appearance aroused heated debates among architectural professionals. The second happened between 2015 and 2018, when the building’s postmodern appearance was planned to be replaced with a slated Art Deco surface during its renovation into a boutique hotel. This paper reveals how a thirst for ‘form innovation’ emerged in the specific social and professional environment shortly after China’s opening-up, and how professional and public awareness of the value of late 20th century architectural heritage was stimulated in the early 21st century in the search for an alternative representation of urban identity other than the widely accepted Art Deco style. This paper emphasises the public meaning of architectural forms in arguing for institutional co-operation in systematic evaluation and conservation legislation for late twentieth century Chinese architectural heritage sites to maintain the historical diversity of the cityscape during urban regeneration.

Adaptive Reuse and Interventions of Chinese Architectural Heritage in the City of Lasem, Indonesia

In Indonesia, Lasem identities as a China Town are constructed and developed over time, and Chinese architectural heritage is one of the main qualities and identity of the city. Recently, these unique Chinese architectural heritages have been transformed for tourism needs. This paper aims to document the transformation of functions or adaptive reuse, and its impact on forms and meanings of the Chinese architectural heritage of the city, and focuses on whether the interventions that occurred were by the principles of architectural conservation. In April 2019, the study surveyed and documented five Chinese historic buildings in Karangturi area in Lasem to understand how the architectural heritage has transformed. The result shows that tourism has a direct influence on changes in the building functions in Lasem, such as the Oei House and Little China that have changed from residences to homestays to accommodate the needs of tourists' lodgings. The other two buildings, namely House of Nyah Giok and Nyah Lasem museum have also changed their functions from residences to a batik home industry and a museum related to tourism attractions. Interventions on the four buildings with sensitive uses are following the principle of minimum intervention that preserved the original main buildings and changed only in the wings buildings, and new buildings for lodgings were infilled in vacant land of the site for the Oei House case. For one building, however, tourism has no direct influence on changes in the building functions, it has changed from a residence to an Islamic boarding school for the development of Islamic education that had nothing to do with preserving Chinese culture. Indirectly, the building remains a tourist destination because of its unique Chinese architectural features. Findings show that for the four Chinese owners, the meaning or significance for the adaptation of the building is preserving historic values of the Chinese architecture, and economic values as well by developing commercial spaces and historic areas for tourist attractions.

Environmental Features of Chinese Architectural Heritage: The Standardization of Form in the Pursuit of Equilibrium with Nature

We present a scientific discussion about Chinese historical architecture and cultural paradigms in order to analyze the formation of building patterns objectively connected to environmental features. In this regard, we will demonstrate the process of standardization from architectural modules related in different levels of composition around “voids”, onto cosmological urban tissues in harmony with nature. The conclusions show that we can only understand Chinese architectural patterns in relation to Dào or nature, and in turn, they possess profound social and environmental values from which we receive useful lessons to advance towards sustainability in architecture and urban planning. The authors believe that it is critical for China and the world to find a new approach to the building construction industry with an ecological and philosophical background recognizable as “Chinese” and based in its own past. In order to support the information provided in the first part of the article, the authors have conducted an environmental analysis of the traditional Chinese urban layout whose results greatly confirm the initial hypotheses, i.e. the historical fashion of constructing neighborhoods improves conditions of the town in terms of comfort and is able to save energy, thus reducing pernicious change effects.

A Research and Application of Three Dimensional Digitization Technology for Restore Chinese Architectural heritage from the Thirteen Factories

The purpose of this paper is to study Non-physical historical buildings composed by computer 3D models to enhance the experience of city culture and realize the “digital city” information management. Non-physical historical buildings could be an important core cover a city culture and memory, and main competitiveness of city development as well. The Thirteen Factories of canton was the center of Sino-Western commercial which including the integration of culture and trade. The research methodology mainly adapted on three approach. 1) Interpretation and transformation for historical information at the Thirteen Factories Yi Guan Area. 2) According to 3D modeling and texture processing achieve real virtual recreation practice.3) To discuss the ways of digital technology to restore the Non-physical historical buildings. This paper focuses on relationship of digital technology and historical culture heritage, which could improve the economics transformation of city culture.

Constructing New Meanings of Chinese Architectural Heritage in the World Heritage Sites of Malacca Straits

This paper aims to construct new meanings of Chinese architectural heritage in the World Heritage sites of Malacca and Penang in the Malacca Straits. Inscribed in 2008, both sites have a history of more than 600 years of migrating trades and cultural exchanges with China. The influence of Chinese culture has given them diverse urban and architectural assets as tangible heritage, and different life styles of different groups of people as intangible heritage. Starting with a survey of the varied Chinese architectural heritage in the two World Heritage sites of the Malacca Straits, this study presents Chinese temples, huiguans, and shop-houses in the surviving historic city centres where various cultures and religions met and coexisted. These sites bear testimony to a living multi-cultural heritage and the tradition of Malay Archipelago, historic China and India, and modern Europe up to nowadays. Setting the two Wold Heritage sites in the full context of China, India and Southeast Asia which were part of the Maritime Silk Roads in ancient times, the study establishes a broader view to understand heritage as a cultural entity, explores the Chinese contribution to heritage, and calls for awareness towards heritage renovation and adaptive reuse throughout history. Furthermore, through an investigation of the architectural and cultural heritage in Southeast Asia from the 15th to the 19th century, the study intends to achieve a better understanding of the vernacular architecture and craftsmanship in southern China and the vernacular Chinese culture and art in Southeast Asia. It means to explore how Chinese cultural heritage was transplanted to the non-Chinese contexts in the Malacca Straits

The Conservation of Traditional Chinese Architectural Heritage—3D Modeling and Metadata Representation

Using digital technology in conservation of cultural heritage has become a worldwide trend. Many useful tools have been applied to different stages of conservation for cultural heritage. However, limited number of researches is done in digitizing traditional Chinese architectural heritage. The study had two main purposes. One was the application of metadata representation, the other being the comparison of 3D modeling effectives to metadata representation between Revit and SketchUp. Literature review and case study were applied to this research. The study took the caisson ceiling of the Taipei Confucius Temple, octagonal with 333 elements in 8 types, as a case study for digitization practice. The results showed, firstly, that cultural heritage databases should be unique in value while many elements were similar in appearance; also, 3D simulations helped general understanding of architectural heritage, but software such as Revit and SketchUp, at this stage, could only be used to model basic visual representation, and was ineffective in documenting additional critical data of individually unique elements. Secondly, when establishing conservation lifecycle information for application in management systems, a full and detailed presentation of the metadata should also be implemented; the existing applications of BIM in managing conservation lifecycles were still insufficient. Results of the research recommended SketchUp as a tool for present modeling needs, and BIM for sharing data among users, but the implementation of metadata representation was of the utmost importance.

Untranslatable Iconicity in Liang Sicheng’s Theory of Architectural Translatability

In 1954, Liang proposed a theory of “architectural translatability,” arguing that an understanding of a universal linguistic principle that underlines different architectures could help translate buildings from one architectural system to another. To modernize the tradition of Chinese architecture, accordingly, was to translate its vocabulary and grammar with modern technology and material, yet without losing its essential formal characteristics. This “linguistic turn” was in line with Liang’s modernist approach to Chinese architectural heritage, seeing building art in its irreducible and essential form and constituents, but the “translingual” practice and subsequent debates about it in the next few decades, ironically, resuscitated major motifs of classical architecture as iconic features of Chinese architecture resistant to modern adaptation or appropriation. The “untranslatable iconicity,” as proposed in this paper, eventually signifies none other than the process by which the traditional form of architecture had been translated and re-translated until its meaning was completely reconceived and reinvented throughout twentieth-century China.

The Particularities of the Protection of Urban Excellent Modern Architectures

Excellent modern architectures will be brought into Chinese architectural heritage protection system in the form of law. Their intrinsic qualities lead to the particularities of their protection strategies. This paper, using the method of contrast, analyzes the particularity of the excellent modern architectures’ protection. The analysis covers many aspects, such as the protective purpose, the protective objects, the evaluation systems, and the protection management regulations.

Structural Preservation of Chinese Architectural Heritage

Two documents issued by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), The Principles for the Analysis, Conservation and Structural Restoration of Architectural Heritage (Structures Principles), 2003, and The Principles for Conservation of Heritage in China (China Principles), published in 2002 and formally promoted in 2005, will impact greatly on historic building conservation practice in China.To date, the approach to intervention on historic buildings in China, which can be summarized as ‘no change to originality’, has been strongly determined by both the fabric of Chinese architecture and customary Chinese engineering practice. The China Principles integrates traditional intervention philosophy with up-to-date international concepts on conservation, and provides a practical guidance for preservation activities in China. However, the increased involvement of structural engineers in heritage work since the 1980s has led to the promotion of the Structures Principles, which aids a systematic approach to the structural diagnosis and analysis of a historic building. This paper discusses how the aspects addressed in the Structures Principles and the China Principles could be assimilated into Chinese architectural heritage conservation. The paper also outlines the absence in both documents of guidelines for some specific issues concerning intervention strategies, diversity of heritage categories and specific materials, and finally identifies areas for further work.