The Ritan is a

public park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to r ...

located in Chaoyang District,

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, China. It is within the Jianguomen area. The nearest

Beijing Subway The Beijing Subway is the rapid transit system of Beijing Municipality that consists of 25 lines including 20 rapid transit lines, two airport rail links, one maglev line and 2 light rail lines, and 463 stations. The rail network extends acro ...

station is Yong'anli on the Beijing subway Line 1. The park was initially home to the Temple of the Sun (), an altar built in 1530 during the late

Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peo ...

History

The altar was built in 1530 during the late

for use in ritual sacrifice to the sun by the

Emperor of China ''Huangdi'' (), translated into English as Emperor, was the superlative title held by monarchs of China who ruled various imperial regimes in Chinese history. In traditional Chinese political theory, the emperor was considered the Son of Heav ...

.The Sun Mural and Sun Altar at Ritan Park
''Drben.net'', 24 October 2017 The original Altar of the sun was a rectangular white-stone

dais A dais or daïs ( or , American English also but sometimes considered nonstandard)dais
in the Random House Dictionary< ...

covered with red glaze, and four stairways (north, east, south and west) with nine steps measuring 18.3 yards in width and length, and 7 feet in height. The temple had been destroyed and restored to reopen in 1556 to the public.Temple of the Sun (Ritan Park)
''Travelguidechina.com'' Upon entering the premises, the emperors would pass through the Heavenly West Gate and along the Sacred Way that led to the sun altar. The temple was abandoned in 1911. Its park was renamed Ritan (or Ri Tan) Park in 1949 and reopened in 1951. In the 1970s, the Ritan Park became part of the embassy district of the city. In the 1980s, the park was restored and expanded southwards with the Quchi Shengchun garden (or Yuxin garden), and the Sun Mural was installed in the park to commemorate the opening policies of

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CCP ...

and the end of Maoist policies. During the 2008 Summer Olympics, it was selected as one of the three protest zones.

Description

The area surrounding the Ritan temple is now a public park, and the site features extensive gardens and a small lake. On the opposite side of Beijing, to the west, is the Temple of the Moon, located in

Fuchengmen Fuchengmen (; Manchu:;Möllendorf:elgiyen i mutehe duka) was a gate on the western side of Beijing's city wall. The gate was torn down in the 1960s, and has been replaced by the Fuchengmen overpass on the 2nd Ring Road. Fuchengmen Station is a ...

. There is a Sino-Japanese Friendship Monument in the park, but it is hard to spot and not well indicated. The Shen Ku and Shen Chu is the place where the tablets of the temple were found. The Qinghui pavilion is the high point with a panoramic view of the park. Below the pavilion is a pond with rockies, a café (the Stone Boat café), much lotus... Many people visit the park in the morning to practice

Tai Chi Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called " shadowboxing", is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and meditation. ...

or other forms of physical or spiritual exercises. The park is free of charge and open 24 hours a day. Restaurants and snacks are available inside the park.Ian Johnson
At Home in Beijing
''Nytimes.com'', 1 May 2017

References

External links

* Chaoyang District, Beijing Buildings and structures completed in 1530 Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Beijing Parks in Beijing Religious buildings and structures completed in 1530 Sun temples Taoist temples in Beijing {{Beijing-geo-stub

History

Description

See also

References

External links