Beijing Central Axis

Visited in June 2024 just before the site was added to the WH list. On this review I will focus on the parts of the axis that are not inscribed otherwise, so I'm skipping Temple of Heaven, Forbidden City and Wanning Bridge in this review.

After visiting Temple of Heaven I exited it through the western gate. From here starts Yongdingmen Park and I was surprised to see almost immediately a map of the Beijing Central Axis that showed the core zone and the buffer zone of the WH site! On the map Yongdingmen Park was marked as "Southern Section Road Archeological Sites". Walking bit further into the park there were other maps showing the exact spots of these archaeological sites. Of those 3 marked sites I only saw the one titled as "Stone Road Site North of the Yongdingmen Gate" which according to the information sign is "the material evidence that irrefutably show the location, orientation, engineering techniques, and history of continuous use of the central road, and bear witness to the state ritual traditions that has continued on Beijing Central Axis to this day." Big words for what is essentially now couple stone slabs on the ground. Next to this these stone slabs is however the magnificent Yongdingmen Gate. I was then surprised to learn that this gate was rebuilt in 2005 and nothing around it is original construction (except those stone slabs). Best part of visiting the park and the gate was that there was almost no one around and it was very nice experience after the crowded Temple of Heaven.

On the day of my visit to the Forbidden City I entered it via Tian'anmen Gate and the Outer Jinshui Bridges. This is where the famous picture of Mao is hanging. After the Tian'anmen Gate you pass through the Upright Gate and then walk past the Altar of Land and Grain and the Imperial Ancestral Temple before entering the Forbidden City. I have to say that I didn't really pay attention to these buildings and I only have photo of the Upright Gate. After visiting the Forbidden City I climbed on top of the Jingshan Hill. You need to buy a ticket to enter the Jingshan Park where the hill is located. The hill is man-made from the the soil excavated in forming the moats of the Forbidden City and the hill was made to protect the palace from evil spirits and dust storms. The view from the top of the hill over the Forbidden City is magnificent and you get 360 degree views of whole Beijing. Definitely a place worth of visit!

On another day I visited the northernmost section of the Central Axis which is the Bell and Drum Towers. Most sites in Beijing are closed on Mondays but these towers however were open. You can buy the ticket to visit both towers at the Drum Tower entrance. The stairs to climb up these towers are very steep so visit is not for the faint-hearted. I arrived perfectly inside the Drum Tower to experience a drumming session. I guess it happens multiple times during the day but I didn't see a schedule anywhere so I was grateful to be there on time. Both towers offer great views over Beijing and the surrounding hutongs. Attached to this review is a photo from the Drum Tower towards Jingshan Hill.

As a whole Beijing Central Axis is an amazing site as it includes the stellar sites of Forbidden City and Temple of Heaven, and I can't give it lower score than 4 stars for that. The sites do demonstrate the linear city planning, especially when you're on top of the Jingshan Hill or the Drum and Bell Towers, and you can see the axis going through the city. It was fun to visit the different components of this site and China seems to be proud of this site as there were information signs and maps of the Central Axis on all the sites I visited.

With the Beijing Central Axis joining the World Heritage List, I want to focus on what is newly inscribed. Therefore, in this review I will not include any information about the Old Beijing City Section of Tonghui Canal, the Forbidden City, or the Temple of Heaven. Additionally, I will not focus on sites within the boundaries (primarily after 1949) which do not contribute to the OUV. The Imperial Palace boundary is the moat, therefore plenty of buildings associated with or adjacent to the Forbidden City were previously not inscribed.

From North to South

• Bell Tower - 47.9 meters high, includes a 63 metric ton bell called 'King of the Bells' which was cast in the early 1400's
• Drum Tower - 46.7 meters high, originally included 25 drums though all were lost, the building was rebuilt in the year 1800
• Wanning Bridge - oldest bridge of the Beijing Central Axis, 13th Century Yuan Dynasty, a rare Beijing site predating the Ming Dynasty
• Jingshan Hill - tallest point on the axis and a key viewpoint, includes Chinese Garden landscape with 1,000 year old trees
• Altar of Land and Grain - an important part of the 'ideal capital of a Chinese city', the Altar of Land and Grain must be on the LEFT
• Imperial Ancestral Temple - an important part of the 'ideal capital of a Chinese city', the Ancestral Temple Grain must be on the RIGHT
• Upright Gate - part of the entrance to the Forbidden City, used for storage for ritual processions when the Emperor left the Imperial Palace
• Tiananmen Gate - the main front gate of the Imperial City and the location of the founding ceremony of the People's Republic of China
• Outer Jinshui Bridges - 5 marble bridges, the center was exclusively used by the Emperor, paralleled by two Huabiao ceremonial columns
• Tiananmen Square Complex - symmetrical large open space aligned to the central axis, dramatically altered since 1949
• Zhengyangmen Gate & Archery Tower - another key viewpoint of the axis, also the start of the Imperial Road
• Altar of the God of Agriculture - Xiannongtan or Temple of Agriculture is symmetrically facing the Temple of Heaven
• Southern Section Road Archeological Sites - road foundations and ancient ditches of the original Imperial Road
• Yongdingmen Gate - a historical reconstruction that marks the Southern terminus of the Beijing Central Axis

Having visited Beijing twice, I covered the axis fairly well and was certainly aware of it having taken a University course on Urban China. The course examined the transformation of Beijing from the end of the dynastic period in 1911 to the End of the Cultural Revolution and the opening of the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall in 1977. The major text was 'Remaking Beijing: Tiananmen Square and the Creation of a Political Space', which certainly provided insight into the changes and symbolism of the Axis during the 20th century. All of this contributed to my annoyance that China made such an effort to erase the wording by ICOMOS that clearly stated the Tiananmen Square Complex did not contribute to the sites OUV. 

The Bell Tower is perhaps the most impressive single structure on the Beijing Central Axis not previously inscribed. The Bell Tower you see today is mostly from a rebuilding effort that took place during the 10th year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong (1745). The height of the structure, the massive bell, and the inevitable stairs remain memorable for me.

As you exit the Forbidden City from the North you are welcomed by a pleasant green space known as Jingshan Hill. If you take the stairs to the main pavilion you will be rewarded with a fantastic view of the Imperial Palace, the Central Axis looking North toward the Bell and Drum Towers, and to the West, Behai Park (part of the Central Axis buffer zone).

A notable feature next to the Outer Jinshui Bridges are the Huabiao ceremonial columns. Featuring mythical animals, including a coiled dragon and a 'denglong' on the top, which symbolizes 'the sending the will of heaven to humans'.

The zero kilometer marker for highways in China is located just outside Zhengyangmen Gate. The gate is more useful for visitors for its view of the axis rather than its own historical value (largely a reconstruction though not completely).

On a return visit to Beijing I would focus on Xiannongtan (Temple of Agriculture), which stands out as one of the most significant components of the Beijing Central Axis.

I definitely like this nomination but it needs to be limited to only important areas. I used this picture (public domain) because it shows 100 years ago Tiananmen Square was an important place and unfortunately the modern student protests including a car terrorist attack in 2013 make us feel the place isn't right for UNESCO. It was also massively renovated with the people's hall, Mao's mausoleum (which used to be the Gate of China area), the museum, none of these should be listed as world heritage. This is only the square, with the other locations usually the same: important, old, but renovated and improved. My picture of Qianmen above (not actually public domain) shows a modern shopping street. It used to be different, even a brothel at a time, but it would only get nominated as the modern look.

If you haven't seen the axis it would surprise me because they even want to add the Temple of Heaven and the Tiananmem Square is hard to miss, you'll probably run into one of the old gates or Beihai park. Like I said I can't see this not getting inscribed but it will cause a lot of problems if not limited to just the old gates.

While Beijing is a great old city rich of cultural heritages, I find it hard to understand why the Central Axis can be nominated as a new World Heritage item.

The nomination contains these sites:  Yongding Gate, Temple of Heaven, Temple of Agriculture, Tian'anmen Square complex, Imperial Ancestral Temple, Altar of the Land and Grain, the Forbidden City, Jingshan Hill, Bell Tower, Drum Tower, Nanluoguxiang, Yandai Bystreet historic area, and the Beihai water system.

The Forbidden City is already listed as World Heritage (Imperial Palaces); Temple of Heaven is also listed as an independent item; Beihai water system is part of The Grand Canal.  We don’t need to give them another world heritage honor to emphasize their importance.

Imperial Ancestral Temple, Altar of the Land and Grain are royal temples connected to the Forbidden City,  and similarly Jingshan Hill is also a royal garden connected to the Forbidden City.   They all can be an extension of Imperial Palaces.

Temple of Agriculture is near by Temple of Heaven at the south, and they are for the same purpose basically:  Praying to the Sky (Heaven, same word in Chinese) for good weather in order to have good harvest (Agriculture).  Thus Temple of Agriculture is better to be an extension of Temple of Heaven.

The government demolished Beijing City Wall and only left behind a few gates.  While Yongding Gate is great, does it still have sufficient OUV?  At least Xi’an and Nanjing have the whole city walls and gates conserved.

Bell Tower and Drum Tower exist in all Chinese old cities.  Nothing special with the ones in Beijing.  Nanluoguxiang and Yandai Bystreet historic area are now touristic places with full of tacky bars and shops.

What left in the list is Tian'anmen Square complex… Oh, right, isn’t it great to have Tian’anmen Square, Great Hall of the People, Monument to the People’s Heroes, and Mausoleum of Mao Zedong all these political icons to be listed as World Heritages?  A great propaganda to her people!

Let’s see if UNESCO will help the Chinese Communist Party to get this task done.