Photography Detail of the Ruins of the Eastern Gate to the Xianfa Hill in the Old Summer Palace
Photography Detail of the Ruins of the Eastern Gate to the Xianfa Hill in the Old Summer Palace
CC BY-SA 4.0
A black-and-white photograph: distant view of the ruins of the East Gate to the artificial Xianfa Hill (Xianfashan 線法山) in the Old Summer Palace (Yuanmingyuan 圓明園) in Beijing, called the “European Pavilions” (Xiyanglou 西洋楼). It was designed and built by the Jesuits in the European Baroque style. The construction was led by the Jesuit Giuseppe Castiglione (1688–1766). As an expression of heaven on earth, the Old Summer Palace housed thousands of priceless treasures and works of art. Its beauty was known even beyond China. This part of the Summer Palace is the greatest expression of Emperor Qianlong’s (reigned 1735–1796) interest in European art. The pavilions were destroyed in 1860 during the Second Opium War by English and French troops along with the rest of the buildings.
The photograph is the 335th of 449 photographs of Beijing and its surroundings in the album of Ivan Skušek Jr., purchased during his stay in Beijing (1914–1920). In ... more
A black-and-white photograph: distant view of the ruins of the East Gate to the artificial Xianfa Hill (Xianfashan 線法山) in the Old Summer Palace (Yuanmingyuan 圓明園) in Beijing, called the “European Pavilions” (Xiyanglou 西洋楼). It was designed and built by the Jesuits in the European Baroque style. The construction was led by the Jesuit Giuseppe Castiglione (1688–1766). As an expression of heaven on earth, the Old Summer Palace housed thousands of priceless treasures and works of art. Its beauty was known even beyond China. This part of the Summer Palace is the greatest expression of Emperor Qianlong’s (reigned 1735–1796) interest in European art. The pavilions were destroyed in 1860 during the Second Opium War by English and French troops along with the rest of the buildings.
The photograph is the 335th of 449 photographs of Beijing and its surroundings in the album of Ivan Skušek Jr., purchased during his stay in Beijing (1914–1920). In the handwritten inventory of the album, the photograph is referred to as Yüen-Ming-Yüen: Nr. 334 gegenwärtig. (DZ, MV)
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