Beijing and Xi’an: Palaces, Pagodas and City Walls

Beijing and Xi’an offer different ways to encounter the history of China’s former capitals. Their landmarks include palaces, ceremonial grounds, defensive walls and archaeological collections. Looking at how these places were built and what they were designed to do adds context beyond the familiar silhouettes.

Beijing: the organisation of imperial space

The Forbidden City served as the imperial palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Its sequence of courtyards and halls follows a strong central axis, making the relationship between individual buildings and the larger palace plan especially striking. Wooden architecture and museum collections add details about the world of the imperial court.

The Temple of Heaven expresses a different purpose. Emperors came here to pray for good harvests, and the ceremonial setting includes the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, the Echo Wall and the Circular Mound Altar. Blue roof tiles, ancient cypress trees and carefully arranged structures give the grounds their distinctive character.

At the Summer Palace, imperial architecture meets a garden landscape. Kunming Lake and Longevity Hill form the setting for the Long Corridor, Tower of Buddhist Incense and Seventeen-Arch Bridge. Comparing these spaces with the palace courtyards reveals how water, views and movement could shape another kind of imperial environment.

Xi’an: archaeology, belief and defence

Emperor Qinshihuang’s Mausoleum Site Museum centres on an imperial burial landscape. Its excavated pottery warriors and horses show the organisation and craftsmanship associated with the first emperor’s mausoleum. The site offers an archaeological perspective on imperial power, distinct from the standing palace buildings of Beijing.

The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda connects Xi’an with Buddhist history. Built to house scriptures and images brought back by Xuanzang, its seven-storey square brick form remains a recognisable part of the city’s skyline. At Shaanxi History Museum, bronzes, Tang tomb murals and works in gold and silver extend the view into the region’s artistic traditions.

Xi’an City Wall adds the history of urban defence. Its broad ramparts and gate towers frame the old city, while the Bell and Drum Towers provide further landmarks within the surrounding streets. Together, these structures help relate the city’s historic layout to the activity around it.

Keep the streets in the picture

Historic landmarks are also part of living cities. Around Beijing’s Shichahai lakes, hutongs, former princely residences and local eateries sit alongside the water. In Xi’an, the wider Huimin Street district connects neighbouring lanes with northwestern Chinese Muslim food traditions. These settings bring another scale to the story: the relationship between monumental places and everyday urban life.