The construction of substantial palaces continued during the WESTERN ZHOU DYNASTY (1045-771 B. C.E.). Excavations at Fengchu and Zhaochen in Shanxi province have uncovered the foundations of substantial buildings. At Fengchu there was an area of nearly 1,500 square meters (1,800 sq. yds.), enclosed on all sides with three courtyards within. The recovery of oracle bones during the excavations indicates that this building would have been occupied by royalty. The entrance pavilion gave access to a large court, while the flanking buildings were broad columned passageways linked to eight rooms on each side, each room three meters (10 ft.) wide and up to seven meters long. The court was the location for the investiture ceremonies described in detail in the inscriptions on bronze vessels. The central hall, reached by a series of steps, was 17 meters wide and six meters deep and bisected the complex. Beyond lay two smaller courts, divided by a covered passageway leading to the rear external corridor. The walls and floor were plastered and then decorated with patterns formed by inserting mother of pearl. A system of subterranean pipes facilitated drainage.
Excavations at Zhaochen, only 2.5 kilometers from Fengchu, yielded the remains of a later palace. It also had a large central hall, demarcated today by the large holes designed to receive the supporting pillars. One of these had a diameter of almost two meters; the others were half this size. Columns of such size could have spanned a considerable space, compatible with the descriptions of grand halls in the Western Zhou palaces contained in the contemporary inscriptions. By this period, the thatched and plastered roof was replaced by interlocking tiles. These Western Zhou palaces were screened from the outside and had enclosed courts bordered by colonnaded walkways and residential chambers. This pattern was continued, but on a grander scale, in the eastern zhou dynasty (770-221 B. C.E.) and Spring and Autumn period (770-476 b. c.e.) at Yong. This was the capital of the state of qin, and the palace now incorporated five linked courtyards with a total length of more than 300 meters. According to a section from the Shijing, or Book of Odes, this enclosed set of courtyards was designed to impart the feeling of mystery.
World History
