老北京四合院SiheyuaninBeijing
NorthChina‘scourtyardhousesareoutstandingrepresentativesoftraditionalresidencesofChina’sHanpeople.Beijing‘sSiheyuan,atthehighestlevelandmosttypicalspecimenofitskind,boastsalonghistory.ORIGINALAccordingtohistoricaldiscoveryanalyses,theSiheyuanresidenceappearedmorethan2,000yearsago.
Nowadays,thereareonlyasmallnumberoftraditionalsiheyuansleftinBeijing,whichareinhabitedbyonefamilyin.SiheyuanisancientBeijingers’lifestylewhichhadbeenbuiltaccordingtoFengshui,onthebasisofarchitecturalprincipleofpursuingluxury,andwithscrupulousdecoration.
CONSTRUCTIONprincipalroomwingroomoppositeroommaindoorfloral-pendantgatescreen-wallverandahouteryardinneryardback-illuminatedroomsconstruction:N
FEATUREInfact,thecentripetalandcohesiveatmosphereofBeijing'sSiheyuan,withitsstrictrulesandforms,isatypicalexpressionofthecharacterofmostChineseresidences.Thecourtyard'spatternofbeingclosedtotheoutsideandopentotheinsidecanberegardedasawiseintegrationoftwokindsofcontradictorypsychologies:Ononehandtheself-sufficientfeudalfamiliesneededtomaintainacertainseparationfromtheoutsideworld;ontheother,thepsychology,deeplyrootedinthemodeofagriculturalproduction,makestheChineseparticularlykeenongettingclosertonature.Theyoftenwanttoseetheheaven,earth,flowers,grassandtreesintheirownhomes.
ADVANTAGESCertainappropriatelysizedsquarecourtyardsofBeijing'sSiheyuanhelpabsorbsunshineinthewintertime.InareassouthofBeijing,wherethesettingsuninthesummerisquitestrong,thecourtyardshavebecomenarrowandlongonthenorth-southsidetoreducetheamountofsunshine.Anotheradvantageofacourtyardhouseisthatitcouldbeinfinitelyexpanded.Asthenumberoffamilymembersincreases,moreroomscanbeadded,withmorecourtyardscreated.
Itcarriesinitselfabundantlifesentimentsof“canopy,fishbowl,pomegranate,houseowner,fatdog,plumpgirl”.清代有句俗语形容四合院内的生活:“天棚、鱼缸、石榴树、老爷、肥狗、胖丫头”,可以说是四合院生活比较典型的写照。
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