Beijing quadrangle view

Beijing quadrangles are the floorboard of traditional houses, with the main rooms and east and west wing rooms surrounding the Intermediate People's Court to form a plane layout. It has the longest history and the widest distribution in China, with a history of more than 700 years. Beijing quadrangles, as the main architectural form that old Beijingers have lived in for generations, are well-known at home and abroad and all over the world.

Beijing quadrangles are famous for their long history. Since Beijing was formally established as the capital in Yuan Dynasty, quadrangles and palaces, office buildings, blocks and hutongs in Beijing have appeared at the same time. Xiong's Analysis at the end of Yuan Dynasty recorded: "The street system is called longitude line in the north and south, and latitude line in the east and west. The street is 24 steps wide, there are 384 fire lanes and 29 streets. " The so-called "street corner" here is what we call hutong today, and between hutong and hutong is the land where people build houses.

At that time, Kublai Khan "wrote to the residents of the old city that the capital was too old, and those with high (rich) positions (serving in the imperial court) came first, but eight acres of land were customized for one point", which was distributed to Jia Jianfang, an official who moved to Beijing, and the large-scale formation of traditional quadrangles in Beijing began.

Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, quadrangles in Beijing have experienced many vicissitudes, but this basic living form has been formed and constantly improved, which is more suitable for living requirements and forms the quadrangle form we see today.

Beijing Siheyuan is famous for its unique composition, and it is typical and representative in traditional residential buildings in China. Most of the residential buildings in China are inner courtyard houses, while the residential courtyards in the south are very small, and the surrounding houses are connected as a whole, which is called "a seal". This kind of residence is suitable for the climate conditions in the south, and the ventilation and lighting are not ideal.

The quadrangles in Beijing are spacious and spacious, and the houses on all sides are independent and connected by cloisters, so life is very convenient.

Siheyuan is a closed house with only one street gate leading to the outside. The closed door comes from Chengtiandi, which has strong privacy and is very suitable for exclusive residence. In the yard, the houses on all sides are open to the yard, and the family is happy. Because the yard is spacious, you can plant trees and flowers, feed birds and fish, and pile stones to beautify the environment. Residents not only enjoy comfortable housing, but also share the beautiful world endowed by nature.

The quadrangle in Beijing is famous because it is a residential building, but it contains profound cultural connotation and is the carrier of China traditional culture.

The construction of quadrangles pays great attention to geomantic omen. From site selection to determining the specific scale of each building, it must be carried out according to the theory of geomantic omen.

Geomantic omen theory is actually an ancient architectural environmentology in China and an important part of China's traditional architectural theory. This geomantic theory has been guiding the architectural activities in ancient China for thousands of years. In addition to the theory of geomantic omen, the decoration, sculpture and painting of quadrangles also reflect folk customs and traditional culture everywhere, showing people's pursuit of happiness, beauty, prosperity and auspiciousness under specific historical conditions. For example, the pattern composed of bats and longevity characters means "longevity", and the pattern with Chinese rose flowers in the vase means "peace in the four seasons". Auspicious words embedded in the door tube and the door head, couplets pasted on eaves columns, and masterpieces of calligraphy and painting hung indoors are all ancient sayings that combine the achievements of sages and philosophers, using ancient and modern famous sentences, or praising the beauty of mountains and rivers, or inscriptions.

In old Beijing, besides the Forbidden City, royal gardens, temples, temples and palaces, a large number of buildings are the homes of countless people.

An Examination of Old News in the Sun quoted a poem from the Yuan Dynasty: "Clouds open and close three thousands of feet, and there are ten thousand pagodas in the fog." This "one million family" house is now called Beijing Siheyuan.

Why is it called "Siheyuan"? Because this kind of house has four rooms: the main room (north room), the inverted seat (south seat), the east wing and the west wing, which are surrounded on all sides to form a zigzag shape with a central courtyard inside, this quadrangle-style house is called quadrangle.

Siheyuan has a long history in China. According to the analysis of existing cultural relics, quadrangle architecture appeared as early as 2000 years ago.

In the process of historical development, China people especially like quadrangles, which are not only used in palaces, temples and government offices, but also widely used in local houses. However, as long as people mention quadrangles, they will naturally think of Beijing quadrangles.

Beijing quadrangles are very regular and typical. Among all kinds of quadrangles, Beijing quadrangle can best represent its main characteristics.

First of all, the central courtyard of Beijing Siheyuan is basically square in plan, but some houses in other areas are not. For example, the courtyards of quadrangles in Shanxi and Shaanxi are vertical rectangles long from north to south and narrow from east to west, while quadrangles in Sichuan and other places are mostly horizontal rectangles long from east to west and narrow from north to south.

Secondly, the houses in the east, west, south and north directions of Beijing Siheyuan are independent, and the east and west wing rooms are not connected with the main building and the inverted building itself. Moreover, the main building, wing room, inverted building and other houses are all on the first floor. There are no buildings, only the veranda at the corner connects these houses. In this way, the Beijing quadrangle has a bird's eye view from the air, just like four small boxes enclosing a yard.

In many quadrangles in the south, the surrounding houses are mostly buildings. At the four corners of the courtyard, the houses are connected together, and the houses in the east, west, north and south do not exist independently. Therefore, southerners call the courtyard "patio", which shows that the courtyard in the south of the Yangtze River is as small as a well, which inevitably reminds people of the idioms of "frog in the well" and "sitting in the well and watching the sky".

Beijing quadrangle is a veritable quadrangle, spacious and open, with plenty of sunshine and broad vision.

The cultural connotation of Beijing quadrangles is rich, which fully embodies the traditional living concept of China.

For example, the quadrangles of the Han nationality in Northeast China (rural quadrangles in Northeast China) conform to the first two characteristics of Beijing quadrangles, but do not have the characteristics of rich cultural connotations.

For example, the single-door quadrangle in Northeast China (in China, the tradition is mostly in the form of double doors) and the practice of setting an "inverted door" behind the hall as a storage room all make people feel that it is a continuation of the poor habits brought by immigrants who "ran to Kanto" in Shandong and other places in the Qing Dynasty. It is precisely because of the above characteristics that people often regard Beijing Siheyuan as a typical representative form of China Siheyuan dwellings.

The quadrangle in Beijing can exist for hundreds of years in history because it has incomparable advantages over other residential buildings. With the gradual acceleration of urban modernization and the emergence of overlapping high-rise buildings, people, especially the old Beijingers who have lived in Beijing for generations, will have a special attachment to quadrangles.

The quadrangle in Beijing is a living form carefully created by the ancient working people. It has been with people for hundreds of years, leaving a deep impression on people's hearts and a very rich legacy to history.

History of quadrangles in Beijing

Since Beijing was formally established as the capital in Yuan Dynasty, quadrangles and palaces, office buildings, blocks and hutongs in Beijing have appeared at the same time. Xiong's Analysis at the end of Yuan Dynasty recorded: "The street system is called longitude line in the north and south, and latitude line in the east and west. The street is 24 steps wide, there are 384 fire lanes and 29 streets. " The so-called "street corner" here is what we call hutong today, and between hutong and hutong is the land where people build houses. At that time, Kublai Khan "wrote to the residents of the old city that the capital was too old, and those with high (rich) positions (serving in the imperial court) came first, but eight acres of land were customized for one point", which was distributed to Jia Jianfang, an official who moved to Beijing, and the large-scale formation of traditional quadrangles in Beijing began. Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, quadrangles in Beijing have experienced many vicissitudes, but this basic living form has been formed and constantly improved, which is more suitable for living requirements and forms the quadrangle form we see today.

Famous place

Beijing Siheyuan is famous for its unique composition, and it is typical and representative in traditional residential buildings in China. Most of the residential buildings in China are inner courtyard houses, while the residential courtyards in the south are very small, and the surrounding houses are connected as a whole, which is called "a seal". This kind of residence is suitable for the climate conditions in the south, and the ventilation and lighting are not ideal. The quadrangles in Beijing are spacious and spacious, surrounded by independent houses and connected by cloisters, which is very convenient to live in.

Structure of quadrangles in Beijing

The so-called four in one, "four" refers to the east, west, south and north, and "combination" refers to all the houses surrounded together to form a "mouth" structure. After hundreds of years of construction, Beijing quadrangles have formed a unique Beijing style from plane layout to internal structure and detail decoration. Regular quadrangles in Beijing generally sit in East-West Hutong, facing south. The basic shape is the north room (main room), the south room (inverted room) and the east and west rooms, which are separated on all sides and surrounded by high walls to form a four-in-one and open a door. The gate is located in the southeast corner of the house. Generally, there are 3 rooms in the north room, 5 rooms in the front room, 3 rooms in the east room, 3 rooms in the west room and 4 rooms in the south room, including door openings and hanging doors *** 17. If each room 1 1- 12 square meters, the total area is about 200 square meters. There is a yard in the middle of the yard, which is very spacious. There are flowers and trees in the courtyard and goldfish in the fish tank. It is the center of the courtyard layout, and it is also the place where people walk, light, ventilate, enjoy the cool, rest and do housework. Siheyuan is a closed house with only one street gate outside. The closed door comes from Chengtiandi, which has strong privacy and is very suitable for exclusive residence. In the courtyard, all four houses are open to the courtyard, and the family is happy and beautiful. Because the yard is spacious, you can plant trees and flowers, feed birds and fish, and pile stones to beautify the environment. Residents not only enjoy comfortable housing, but also share the beautiful world endowed by nature.

It contains profound cultural connotations.

Although it is a residential building, it contains profound cultural connotation and is the carrier of China traditional culture. The construction of quadrangles pays great attention to geomantic omen. From site selection to determining the specific scale of each building, it must be carried out according to the theory of geomantic omen. Beijing quadrangles are famous all over the world. In old Beijing, besides the Forbidden City, royal gardens, temples, temples and palaces, a large number of buildings are the homes of countless people. An Examination of Old News in the Sun quoted a poem from the Yuan Dynasty: "Clouds open and close three thousands of feet, and there are ten thousand pagodas in the fog." This "one million family" house is now called Beijing Siheyuan.

The origin of the name

Why is it called "Siheyuan"? Because this kind of house has four rooms: the main room (north room), the inverted seat (south seat), the east wing and the west wing, which are surrounded on all sides to form a zigzag shape with a central courtyard inside, this quadrangle-style house is called quadrangle. Siheyuan has a long history in China. According to the analysis of existing cultural relics, quadrangle architecture appeared as early as 2000 years ago. In the process of historical development, China people especially like quadrangles, which are not only used in palaces, temples and government offices, but also widely used in local houses. However, as long as people mention quadrangles, they will naturally think of Beijing quadrangles. Why? This is because Beijing quadrangles are relatively regular and typical. Among all kinds of quadrangles, Beijing quadrangle can best represent its main characteristics. First of all, the central courtyard of Beijing Siheyuan is basically square in plan, but some houses in other areas are not. For example, the courtyards of quadrangles in Shanxi and Shaanxi are vertical rectangles long from north to south and narrow from east to west, while quadrangles in Sichuan and other places are mostly horizontal rectangles long from east to west and narrow from north to south. Secondly, the houses in the east, west, south and north directions of Beijing Siheyuan are independent, and the east and west wing rooms are not connected with the main building and the inverted building itself. Moreover, the main building, wing room, inverted building and other houses are all on the first floor. There are no buildings, only the veranda at the corner connects these houses. In this way, the Beijing quadrangle has a bird's eye view from the air, just like four small boxes enclosing a yard. In many quadrangles in the south, the surrounding houses are mostly buildings. At the four corners of the courtyard, the houses are connected together, and the houses in the east, west, north and south do not exist independently. Therefore, southerners call the courtyard "patio", which shows that the courtyard in the south of the Yangtze River is as small as a well, which inevitably reminds people of the idioms of "frog in the well" and "sitting in the well and watching the sky".

typical representatives

Beijing quadrangle is a veritable quadrangle, spacious and open, with plenty of sunshine and broad vision. Another point is that the cultural connotation of Beijing Siheyuan is rich, which fully embodies the traditional living concept of China. For example, the quadrangles of the Han nationality in Northeast China (rural quadrangles in Northeast China) conform to the first two characteristics of Beijing quadrangles, but do not have the characteristics of rich cultural connotations. For example, the single-door quadrangle in Northeast China (in China, the tradition is mostly in the form of double doors) and the practice of setting an "inverted door" behind the hall as a storage room all make people feel that it is a continuation of the poor habits brought by immigrants who "ran to Kanto" in Shandong and other places in the Qing Dynasty. It is precisely because of the above characteristics that people often regard Beijing Siheyuan as a typical representative form of China Siheyuan dwellings. The quadrangular gate generally occupies the area of a room, and the parts are quite complicated. Only the names are gatehouse, doorway, gate (door leaf), door frame, waist seal, plug, walking board, door pillow, sill, threshold, door pin, big edge, plastering, threading, door core plate and door cymbal. The gate is generally black oil, and red oil and black couplets can be added. Into the gate, there are hanging flower doors, moon doors and so on. Hanging flower door is the most gorgeous decorative door in quadrangles. It is called "hanging flowers" because the eaves of the door are arched to separate the inner and outer courtyards. Outside the door is the living room, concierge, garage and other "outhouses", while inside the door is the bedroom "inner room" where the master lives. If there is no hanging door, you can use the moon door to separate the inner and outer rooms.

The scale of quadrangles in Beijing

Although quadrangles have certain regulations, they vary in size and can be roughly divided into three types: large quadrangles, medium quadrangles and small quadrangles:

Small quadrangle

Small quadrangles are generally three rooms in the north, one bright and two dark or two bright and one dark, two rooms in the east and west wing and three rooms in the south wing. Bricklaying to the top, roof tile house. Can live in a family of three generations, the ancestors live in the main room, the younger generation lives in the wing, and the south room is used as a study or living room. The yard is paved with a brick tunnel, which connects all the doors, and there are steps in front of each door. There are two doors, decorated with black paint and oil, with a pair of brass cymbals and couplets on the doors.

Zhong quadrangle

The quadrangle in the middle is more spacious than the small quadrangle. Generally, there are 5 north rooms, 3 front rooms and 2 east and west rooms. There is a corridor in front of the house to shelter from the wind and rain. In addition, the courtyard wall is divided into front yard (outer yard) and backyard (inner yard), and the courtyard wall is connected by the moon gate. The front yard is deep and simple, with one or two houses as doormen and the backyard as folk houses. The building is exquisite, and the ground is paved with brick and bluestone.

Big quadrangle

Large quadrangles are customarily called "big houses". Houses can be set in five south and five north, seven south and seven north, and there are even nine rooms 1 1 big main rooms, which are generally compound quadrangles, that is, multiple quadrangles are deeply connected. There are many courtyards, including front yard, backyard, east yard, west yard, main yard, side yard, cross yard, study yard, enclosed house yard, horse number, first entrance, second entrance, third entrance and so on. There is a handwritten veranda in the yard connecting various places, covering a huge area. If the floors available for building are narrow, or the economic bearing capacity is unbearable, the quadrangle can be changed into a three-story quadrangle instead of the south building. Small and medium-sized quadrangles are generally the houses of ordinary residents, and the big four-in-one is a mansion and official residence. Other introductions of quadrangles in Beijing

Beijing quadrangle is a Beijing quadrangle building with brick and wood structure. Purlins, columns, beams (rafters), window sills, rafters, doors and windows, partition fans, etc. They are all made of wood, and the walls around the wooden shelf are made of bricks. Beams, doors, windows and rafters should be painted with colored pictures. Although they are not as brilliant as the palace gardens, they are also colorful. Walls are used to building walls with floor bricks and broken bricks. As the saying goes, "there are three treasures in Beijing ... rotten bricks can't build walls." Most of the roof tiles are blue tiles, which are interlocking. Before the eaves are dripped, or the tiles are not laid, all the roofs are painted with blue ash, which is called "grey shed". The quadrangular gate generally occupies the area of a room, and the parts are quite complicated. Only the names are gatehouse, doorway, gate (door leaf), door frame, waist seal, plug, walking board, door pillow, sill, threshold, door pin, big edge, plastering, threading, door core plate and door cymbal. The gate is generally black oil, and red oil and black couplets can be added. Into the gate, there are hanging flower doors, moon doors and so on. Hanging flower door is the most gorgeous decorative door in quadrangles. It is called "hanging flowers" because the eaves of the door are arched to separate the inner and outer courtyards. Outside the door is the living room, concierge, garage and other "outhouses", while inside the door is the bedroom "inner room" where the master lives. If there is no hanging door, you can use the moon door to separate the inner and outer rooms. The hanging door is beautifully painted, the eaves and rafters are painted blue-green, the rosewood is oily red, the round rafters are painted blue, white and black, and the square rafters are painted gold or diamond on the blue background. The center of the front eaves is decorated with brocade, flowers and Bo Gu. The lotus stigma hanging on both sides is painted with colorful colors according to the carved pattern. The carved patterns of quadrangles are mainly auspicious patterns, such as "longevity and happiness" composed of bats and longevity figures, "Four Seasons Peace" implied by a vase with Chinese roses, "Three generations of descendants", "Jade Hall is rich" and "Fulu Xi Shou", which show the longing of old Beijingers for a better life.

Windows and windowsill walls

Windows and sill walls are embedded in the large frame between the upper sill (without lower sill) and the left and right columns. The upper window frame can be supported, while the lower window frame is usually fixed. In winter, Korean paper or cellophane is often used to stick windows, which are bright inside and dark outside, which can not only prevent the invasion of cold air, but also keep sufficient indoor light. Stick a window screen or cold cloth on the window in summer. This is a window screen made of wood in various counties in southern Beijing. It looks like cloth instead of cloth, which can provide ventilation and relieve indoor heat. Add a piece of paper outside the cold cloth, roll it up during the day and put it down at night, so it is also called "rolling window". Some people use a window with an upper branch and a lower branch.

door curtain

There are many sandstorms in Beijing in winter and spring, and door curtains are often used in residential buildings. Generally speaking, people hang a cotton curtain with plywood in winter, a sandwich curtain with plywood in spring and autumn, and a bamboo curtain with plywood in summer. Poor families can use grass curtains or broken felt curtains. The door curtain can be hung, and the purpose of installing plywood on the upper, middle and lower parts is to increase the weight and not be lifted by the wind. Later, the door curtain was replaced by an air door, but bamboo curtain was still used in summer, which was cool, bright and practical.

ceiling

The ceilings of quadrangles are all made of sorghum stalks and covered with paper. Beijing ceiling pasting is a technology. In the quadrangle, the ceiling, walls, curtains and windows are all covered with white paper, which is called "Four Whites in the End". Ordinary people go there once every few years, and the rich "four times a year". It is very cold in winter in Beijing. The residents in the quadrangle all sleep on the kang. There is a coal stove buried underground in front of the kang, and a fire is built in the stove. When the kang is empty and the fire enters the kang hole, the kang bed will heat up and people will feel warm when sleeping on the hot kang. Most of the coal used to burn kang is produced in Xishan, Beijing. There is a difference between raw coal and pulverized coal. Coal powder and loess are shaken with coal balls to burn kang or cook. Indoor heating uses stoves, which can be divided into mud, iron and copper according to texture. Clay stoves are made of Guo Kuimu made in Beijing. They are highly breathable, light in weight and easy to move. Rich families always have several stoves. Generally, people use the fire in front of the kang to cook and stir-fry instead of burning another stove. The so-called "pot is connected to the stove", so it is difficult to separate life from daily life. The stove can be used in bank up, so it is always kept in case of emergency. If it goes out, burn it with dry wood and charcoal. Housewives will take the stove outside the house every morning to make a fire (to prevent gas poisoning), which will become a scene in Beijing. The discharge of domestic water in quadrangles is mostly in the form of seepage pits, commonly known as "seepage wells" and "seepage ditches". Siheyuan generally has no toilets, and toilets are mostly located in hutongs, which are called "official houses". Beijing quadrangles pay attention to greening, and there are flowers and trees in the courtyard, which is really elegant and pleasant. The favorite flowers in old Beijing are lilac, begonia, elm leaf plum, peach blossom and so on, and the trees are mostly jujube and locust trees. In addition to planting flowers and plants, you can also plant plants and water them. The most common potted flowers and trees are pomegranate, oleander, Jingui, Yin Gui, Rhododendron and Gardenia. Planting pomegranate is a sign of "many children". As for the grass jasmine, impatiens, morning glory and flat bean curd in the garden before the hospital, it is the daily beauty of the courtyard. There is a saying in Qing Dynasty that describes life in quadrangles: "ceiling, fish tank, pomegranate tree, old man, young lady, fat girl", which can be said to be a typical portrayal of life in quadrangles.