Yueyang Tower
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Welcome to Yueyang Tower.Now the tower standing in front of us is Yueyang Tower.It’s locates in Yueyang city by Dongting Lake in northern Hunan Province.It’s listed as three famous towers in the south of Yangtze River, together with Yellow Crane Tower at Wuhan, Hubei province and Tengwang Tower at Nanchang, Jiangxi province.
The predeceor of Yueyang Tower was a structure built in the three kingdoms period for reviewing military parades.It was expended by a garrison commander called Lu su.In 759, the tower was given its present name.From the on, it was subsequently rebuilt numerous occasions.The present tower was rebuilt in 1983.
I have said the tower was got its name in Tang Dynasty, which was at the height of literary glory.The original tower was a meeting place for famous poets such as Libai, Dufu and Bai Juyi.They met on this tower and left behind hundreds of graceful poems.However Yueyang Tower became really famous after the eay “A Panegyric of the Yueyang Tower”, was written by Fan Zhongyan,a well know statesman and intellective at that time in China.When the tower was rebuilt in 1045, Fan was invited by his friend Teng Zijing, to write an eay in memory of the event.Teng Zijing, who was once a Song Dynasty official, was banished to Yueyang as the local garrison commander.In the second year, he had the Yueyang Tower repaired and had poems by previous poets inscribed on the walls of the Tower.
The three storey tower is 21.35m high.It constructed with pure wood.That is to say you can’t find any nails in the tower.It’s a miracle, isn’t it? It includes four main halls.Three upward curving roofs covered with glazed yellow tails are supported by the huge red pillars, 20 outers and 12 inner rooms.Especially noteworthy is the tower top, which resembles a helmet
used by a warrior in ancient time.Now look at the under of the helmet top, you can find the tower is almost supported by many brackets.They are called Ruyi Dougong, a local construction.They lay on each other, and stretch out.Support strength and load weight together, just like the helmet shaped roof.They are real rarity in ancient China’s architecture.The structure is a unique combination, the lake Dongting has been known as “the first water under heaven”, the tower also long enjoyed as “the first tower under heaven”.
Ok, let’s go into and have a look.
On the first floor, what we can see first is the inscribed screen of the great eay named “A Panegyric of the Yueyang Tower”.In this eay, Fan described the beauty of the structure and and profound thought with the matchle rhythm.He made the theme of his writing famous far and wide, award the tower great fame.The most famous couples in his eay “Be the first to worry about the troubles acro the land, the last to enjoy universal happine”, “One shouldn’t be pleased with or anxious about the matters around him” as well as himself have becomes familiar to every Chinese.
Ok, let’s go to the third floor!
Well, we can have a good look through the widows in the long distance.It seems like the lake as well as the sky join together and fix together into one color.You can relax yourself and expre emotions here, just like the ancient poets.At the center of the hall which hang up a caving screen of a poem.It was created by Dufu and written by Chairman Mao.After reading this, you can learn about the hand writing of Chairman Mao.We can recognize not only the compact arrangement, but also the vigorous character.And the abundant thoughts are marvelous.
Ok, that’s my introduction about Yueyang Tower.Have a wonderful time! See you!
