Tinted lantern slide of the Altar of Heaven at the Tiantan (Temple of Heaven) complex, Beijing. Tiantan remains the largest existing sacrificial temple complex 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.' The slide shows the elaborately carved Altar of Heaven, also known as the Circular Mound Altar (yuan qiu tan). The altar was built in 1530 and enlarged in 1749, and was originally used for ceremonies in times of drought. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, animal sacrifices (particularly of bulls) and offerings were performed on the altar in order to pray for good harvests. Construction started on the temple in 1406, and the site was expanded under the Qing emperors Qianlong (1736-1796) and Jiaqing (1796-1820). 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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