Tinted lantern slide showing carving of dragons and clouds on the steps of the Temple of Heaven (Tiantan) in Beijing. The slide features detail from a depiction of the ascent of the dragon and the phoenix. Tiantan remains the largest existing sacrificial temple in China, and was used in the Ming and Qing dynasties as the site of elaborate Imperial sacrifices to the 'Supreme Ruler of the Universe.' Construction started on the temple in 1406, and the site was expanded under the Qing emperors Qianlong (1736-1796) and Jiaqing (1796-1820). Dragons were the most sacred animal in Chinese culture, representing the Emperor himself. Dragons were represented as benevolent creatures in Chinese tradition, who ruled over the Lakes, Rivers and Seas. The slide was developed by the Photo Department, Tientsin Hui Wen Academy, Tientsin, China. This slide comes from a collection held by the Church of Scotland and generated by the medical missionary Charles Somerville, who worked for the London Missionary Society in Hankou from 1904 to 1914.
Format
lantern slides 8.2 x 8.2cm lantern slides photographs
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