天坛(The Temple of Heaven):The Temple of Heaven, literally the Altar of Heaven () is situated in south eastern urban Beijing, in Xuanwu District. Construction of the Temple began in 1420, and was thereafter visited by all subsequent Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties. It is a temple of Taoism.The Temple grounds covers 2.73 km2 of parkland, and comprises three main groups of constructions, all built according to strict philosophical requirements:The Earthly Mount (圜丘坛), an empty platform on three levels of marble stones, where the Emperor prayed for favourable weather;The House of Heavenly Lord (皇穹宇), a single-gabled circular building, built on a single level of marble stone base, where the altars were housed when not in use;The Hall of Annual Prayer (祈年殿), a magnificent triple-gabled circular building, built on three levels of marble stone base, where the Emperor prayed for good harvests.
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