The Shangjing norm of the Liao dynasty and the Dongjing mode of the Northern Song dynasty
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Xinlin Dong
Abstract
After the downfall of the Tang dynasty, the Khitan-Liao empire, the Five Dynasties, and Northern Song dynasty formed the second “northern and southern dynasties” confrontation in the history of China. Also in this period, two systems appeared in the capital city planning: the “Shangjing norm” of the Liao dynasty characterized by the 日-shaped plan view and the “Dongjing mode” of the Northern Song dynasty characterized by the 回-shaped plan view. The “Shangjing norm” is the materialization of the political system of “ruling by the customs of the peoples being ruled” applied by the nomadic rulers from the northern steppes when they were managing the empire with the Han people as the majority. This seemingly reflected the ethnic discrimination of the nomadic ruling class at the beginning of the establishment of their empire. The capital designing ideas of the Jin, Yuan, and Qing dynasties were all following this norm at the beginnings of their rules. “Dongjing mode” of the Northern Song dynasty is the materialization of the “imperial sovereignty” idea emphasized by the empires founded by the Han rulers, which seems reflecting the bureaucrat system with the centralization as the characteristics. The designs of the Liao Zhongjing (Central Capital) and the Jin Zhongdu were both simulations of that of Dongjing, which showed the trends of ethnic convergence and unification. Moreover, Dadu of the Yuan dynasty and Beijing of the Ming and Qing dynasties were the symbols of the formation of the unified multiethnic empire of China.
Postscript
The original report published in Kaogu 考古(Archaeology) 2019.5:2–19 with 11 illustrations was authored by Xinlin Dong 董新林. This abridged version is translated into English by Zhaoli Wang 王昭力.
References
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© 2020 Walter De Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- New archaeological discoveries
- The Qingtang site in Yingde City, Guangdong Province
- The Wangjiabang cemetery of the Chenghe site of the Neolithic Age in Shayang County, Hubei Province
- The Lushanmao site of the Neolithic Age in Yan’an City, Shaanxi Province
- The Liujiawa site of the Rui state of the Eastern Zhou in Chengcheng County, Shaanxi Province
- The Chengba site in Quxian County, Sichuan Province
- The Taizicheng city site of the Jin dynasty in Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province
- Reports
- The excavation of Zone III of the Xiaonanshan site in Raohe County, Heilongjiang Province in 2015
- The excavation of tomb M2158 at the Hengshui cemetery of the Western Zhou dynasty in Jiangxian County, Shanxi Province
- The excavation of a Buddhist temple complex of the Qocho Uyghur kingdom in the middle of the west zone of the Tuyoq caves in Shanshan County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
- Research
- On cupstones in South China
- Study on the burial practice of tomb M13 of the Yangshao culture at Baligang site in Dengzhou City
- On the source “composition” of the bronze vessels in the burials of the Yinxu site
- Shang dynasty bronzes and society in southern China: an illustration of complexity and diversity
- The unearthed bronze coin molds and the evolution of coin technology in the Warring States period and Qin-Han dynasties
- The “bowl-shaped” bloomeries of Pingnan County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and the origins of “bowl-shaped” bloomery in China
- On the early lokapāla statues in the Buddhist sculptures unearthed in Chengdu
- The Shangjing norm of the Liao dynasty and the Dongjing mode of the Northern Song dynasty
- Identification of domestic chicken bones in archaeological sites
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- New archaeological discoveries
- The Qingtang site in Yingde City, Guangdong Province
- The Wangjiabang cemetery of the Chenghe site of the Neolithic Age in Shayang County, Hubei Province
- The Lushanmao site of the Neolithic Age in Yan’an City, Shaanxi Province
- The Liujiawa site of the Rui state of the Eastern Zhou in Chengcheng County, Shaanxi Province
- The Chengba site in Quxian County, Sichuan Province
- The Taizicheng city site of the Jin dynasty in Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province
- Reports
- The excavation of Zone III of the Xiaonanshan site in Raohe County, Heilongjiang Province in 2015
- The excavation of tomb M2158 at the Hengshui cemetery of the Western Zhou dynasty in Jiangxian County, Shanxi Province
- The excavation of a Buddhist temple complex of the Qocho Uyghur kingdom in the middle of the west zone of the Tuyoq caves in Shanshan County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
- Research
- On cupstones in South China
- Study on the burial practice of tomb M13 of the Yangshao culture at Baligang site in Dengzhou City
- On the source “composition” of the bronze vessels in the burials of the Yinxu site
- Shang dynasty bronzes and society in southern China: an illustration of complexity and diversity
- The unearthed bronze coin molds and the evolution of coin technology in the Warring States period and Qin-Han dynasties
- The “bowl-shaped” bloomeries of Pingnan County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and the origins of “bowl-shaped” bloomery in China
- On the early lokapāla statues in the Buddhist sculptures unearthed in Chengdu
- The Shangjing norm of the Liao dynasty and the Dongjing mode of the Northern Song dynasty
- Identification of domestic chicken bones in archaeological sites
