Temple of Heaven

the Temple of Heaven

The Temple of Heaven was the place where the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties would worship Heaven and pray for bumper crops.

Built first in 1420(the 18th year of Emperor Yongle's reign of the Ming Dynasty), and then expanded and reconstructed during the Ming Emperor Jiajing's reign and Qing Emperor Qianlong's reign, the Temple of Heaven is a grand and magnificent masterpiece of architecture with a formal and solemn environment. Since the founding of New China, the government has allotted a great sum of money to protect and restore the cultural monuments there. The Temple of Heaven with its long history, deep cultural content and magnificent architectural style mirrors the ancient culture of the Orient.

In the Temple of Heaven are situated such main buildings as the Hall of Prayer for Good harvests, the Hall of Heavenly Emperor, the Circular Mound, the Imperial Vault of Heaven, the Abstinence Hall, the Beamless Hall, the Long Corridor, the Longevity Pavilion in a double ring shape as well as the Echo Wall, the Three Echo Stones, and the Seven Meteoric Stones.

The Temple of Heaven is the largest architectural group for worshipping Heaven in the world. In 1961, it was listed by the State Council as "one of the key monuments under the state protection". In 1998, it was recognized by the UNESCO as "one of the human heritages of the world".

Address:

East of Tianqiao, Tiantanlu, Chongwen District

Opening Hours:

6:00 to 17:30 (March.1 to June.30)

6:00 to 18:00 (July.1 to Oct.31)

6:00 to 17:00 (Nov.1 to Feb.28)