|
 In
the center of Xi’an, at
the intersection of the
north, the south, the
east and west street
stands the Tower, and to
the four dirctions from
it along the four
streets to the city wall
stand four city gate
towers.
The Bell Tower is a
square-shaped
construction with the
height of the 36 meters,
built on the
8-meter-high blue brick
base with for corridors
connected together. It
occupies and area of
1,377 square meters. The
Bell Tower was
originally built in the
Guangji Street 0.5
kilometer west of the
Drum Tower in the 17th
year of Hong Wu period
of the Ming Dynasty
(1384 AD). In 1582 AD,
supervised by the city
governor Gong Xinxian,
it was moved to the
present-day site. The
tower is five-room long
and wide, together with
a seven-room surrounding
corridor on the upper
floor. Three storeys of
eaves seen from the
exterior of the
building, but the
interior of the building
has only two storeys.
The upturned eaves are
supported by colorful
dougong (a unique of
Chinese architectural
style). The whole tower
is a wooden structure
with mortise and tenon
jointed without a single
iron nail. The three
layers of eaves are
covered with blue glazed
tiles, the beams and
columns of the upper and
lower rooms are
decorated with colour
paintings. The top part
of the tower is 5 meter
high, with a gold-tiled
roof. All this makes the
tower look magnificent
and grand.
The Bell Tower was then
used for telling time,
and the bell was
stricken for 70 times
each day. The sound of
striking reached far and
wide. At present, the
Bell Tower is ready to
meet visitors from both
home and abroad in a new
and elegant look. |
