The quadrilateral is introduced as follows:
Siheyuan, also known as Siheyuan, is a traditional quadrangle-style building in China. Its pattern is a courtyard surrounded by houses, so it is named quadrangle.
Siheyuan is a house with a concierge in front of Sanheyuan. If it looks like a "mouth", it is called a courtyard; The shape of "sky" is called binary courtyard; The shape of "wood" is called Sanjinyuan.
Generally speaking, in a big house, the first entrance is the gatehouse, the second entrance is the hall, and the third or last entrance is the private room or boudoir, which is the activity space for women or their families. Ordinary people are not allowed to enter at will. No wonder the ancients said that "the courtyard is as deep as a person." The deeper the courtyard, the less you can see its hall.
Siheyuan has a history of at least 3,000 years, and there are many types in China, among which Beijing Siheyuan is a typical one. Siheyuan, usually inhabited by large families, has the good characteristics of being warm in winter and cool in summer, and can form a private living environment. Its architecture and pattern embody China's traditional hierarchical thought and the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements.
In modern times, with the change of family structure and social concept, the livability of traditional quadrangles has been challenged. In the process of urban planning, traditional quadrangles are also facing the contradiction between protection and development. Some quadrangles were listed as cultural relics protection units, while others were demolished.
Siheyuan has a long history. As early as 3000 years ago, there were complete quadrangles in the Western Zhou Dynasty in China. The remains of Jin Liang quadrangle unearthed from Joo Won? site in Feng Chu village, Qishan County, Shaanxi Province, are the earliest and most orderly quadrangles known in China.
The quadrangle architecture in Han Dynasty has been updated and developed. Influenced by geomantic omen theory, quadrangles have a whole set of views of Yin-Yang and Five Elements from site selection to layout. In the Tang Dynasty, quadrangles inherited the Han Dynasty and the Song and Yuan Dynasties, with a narrow front and a narrow back.
However, the quadrangle that prevailed in ancient times was the corridor courtyard, that is, the central axis of the courtyard was the main building, surrounded by corridors, or houses on the left and right, rather than houses on all sides. In the late Tang Dynasty, quadrangles with cloisters appeared, gradually replacing cloisters. After the Song Dynasty, cloisters gradually decreased and disappeared in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.