1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Nanking

The T’aip’ing rebels, who carried the town by assault in 1853, swept away all the national monuments and most of the more conspicuous public buildings it contained, and destroyed the greater part of the magnificent wall which surrounded it. This wall is said by Chinese topographers to have been 96 li, or 32 m., in circumference. This computation has, however, been shown to be a gross exaggeration, and it is probable that 60 li, or 20 m., would be nearer the actual dimensions. The wall, of which only small portions remain, was about 70 ft. in height, measured 30 ft. in thickness at, the base, and was pierced by thirteen gates. Encircling the north, east, and south sides of the city proper was a second wall which enclosed about double the space of the inner enclosure. In the north-east corner of the town stood the imperial palace reared by Hung-wu, the imperial founder of the modern city. After suffering mutilation at the overthrow of the Ming dynasty, this magnificent building was burnt to the ground on the recapture of the city from the T’aip’ing rebels in 1864. But beyond comparison the most conspicuous public building at Nanking was the famous porcelain tower, which was designed by the emperor Yung-lo (1403-1428) to commemorate the virtues of his mother. Twelve centuries previously an Indian priest deposited on the spot where this monument afterwards stood a relic of Buddha, and raised over the sacred object a small pagoda of three stories in height. During the disturbed times which heralded the close of the Yuen dynasty (1368) this pagoda was utterly destroyed. It was doubtless out of respect to the relic which then perished that Yung-lo chose this site for the erection of his “token-of-gratitude” pagoda. The building was begun in 1413. But before it was finished Yung-lo had passed away, and it was reserved for his successor to see the final pinnacle fixed in its place, after nineteen years had been consumed in carrying out the designs of the imperial architect. In shape the pagoda was an octagon, and was about 260 ft. in height, or, as the Chinese say, with that extraordinary love for inaccurate accuracy which is peculiar to them, 32 chang (a chang equals about 120 in.) 9 ft. 4 in. and ${\displaystyle \scriptstyle {\frac {9}{10}}}$ of an inch. The outer walls were cased with bricks of the finest white porcelain, and each of the nine stories into which the building was divided was marked by overhanging eaves composed of green glazed tiles of the same material. The summit was crowned with a gilt ball fixed on the top of an iron rod, which in its turn was encircled by nine iron rings. Hung on chains which stretched from this apex to the eaves of the roof were five large pearls of good augury for the safety of the city. One was supposed to avert floods, another to prevent tires, a third to keep dust-storms at a distance, a fourth to allay tempests, and a fifth to guard the city against disturbances. From the eaves of the several stories there hung one hundred and fifty-two bells and countless lanterns. In bygone days Nanking was one of the chief literary centres of the empire, besides being famous for its manufacturing industries. Satin, crape, nankeen, cloth, paper, pottery, and artificial flowers were among its chief products.