It Is Reduced (1/10
The Scale) From A Rubbing Of A Plan Of The City Incised On Marble
Measuring 6' 7" By 4' 4", And Which Has Been Preserved In The Confucian
Temple In Su-Chau Since A.D. 1247.
Marco Polo's eyes have probably rested
on this fine work, comparable to the famous Pianta Capitolina.
The
engraving on page 183 represents one of the gates traced from the rubbing
and reduced to half the scale. It is therefore an authentic
representation of Chinese fortification in or before the 13th century.[2]
["In the southern part of Su-chau is the park, surrounded by a high wall,
which contains the group of buildings called the Confucian Temple. This is
the Dragon's head; - the Dragon Street, running directly North, is his
body, and the Great Pagoda is his tail. In front is a grove of cedars. To
one side is the hall where thousands of scholars go to worship at the
Spring and Autumn Festivals - this for the gentry alone, not for the
unlettered populace. There is a building used for the slaughter of
animals, another containing a map of the city engraved in stone; a third
with tablets and astronomical diagrams, and a fourth containing the
Provincial Library. On each side of the large courts are rooms where are
placed the tablets of the 500 sages. The main temple is 50 by 70 feet, and
contains the tablet of Confucius and a number of gilded boards with
mottoes. It is a very imposing structure.
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