The archway is the official name in ancient times, and the common people commonly call it the archway. As a symbol of Chinese culture, the archway has a long history and has existed since the Zhou Dynasty. "Poetry·Chen Feng·Hengmen" says: "Under Hengmen, you can live in Chi." "The Book of Songs" was compiled in the Spring and Autumn Period. The period is generally from the early Zhou Dynasty to the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period. From this, it can be inferred that "Hengmen" appeared in the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period at the latest. Hengmen exists as a structure with two pillars and one beam. It was formerly called "Hengmen" and is the ancestor of what is now known as the archway.
In terms of form, there are only two types of archways - one is called the "sky-topping style" and the "pillar-protruding style". As the name suggests, the pillars of this type of archway are higher than the roof of the Minglou; the other type is "not showing up". The highest peak of this type of archway is the main ridge of Minglou. If the division is more detailed, it can be based on the number of rooms and floors in each archway. Regardless of whether the pillars are protruding or not, there are "one room with two pillars", "three rooms with four pillars", "five rooms with six pillars" and other forms. The number of floors on the top is in the form of first floor, third floor, fifth floor, seventh floor, ninth floor, etc. Among the archways in Beijing, the largest is the "Five Rooms, Six Pillars and Eleven Floors". Most of the archways in palaces and gardens are of the humble style, while most of the archways on the streets are of the soaring style.
The first type is the wooden archway, which has the largest number of archways. The underground part is made of cypress wood piles, which is called Diding. The lower parts of each pillar above the foundation are wrapped with "clamping stones", and the outside is tied with iron hoops. The wooden archways in the streets have very short eaves at the top and are made into a hanging mountain or verandah style. The end of each column protrudes from the ridge, and the top of the column is covered with a cloud can (also called a Vairocana hat) to prevent wind, rain and insects from being eaten away. The tiles used on building roofs and black cloth tiles are mostly used in streets and lanes.
The second type is the glazed archway. This type of archway is mostly used in Buddhist temple complexes, and there are only three types with four columns and seven floors in Beijing. Its structure is to build a 6 to 8-foot brick wall on a stone foundation, with trumpet columns installed inside the wall and Wannian Fang as the skeleton. There are three round gates on the brick wall. Under the wall is a blue and white stone Xumi pedestal, which is carved with various styles of artistic patterns. The columns, squares, finials, flower panels, regular columns, dragon and phoenix boards, bright towers, secondary towers, mezzanine towers, side towers, etc. on the walls are all similar to those of wooden squares. The difference is that this kind of square is inlaid with yellow and green glazed bricks, which is majestic and spectacular.
The third category is the stone archway. This type of archway is most common in landscape gardens, streets, and in front of mausoleums. From the structural point of view, there are different types of complex and simple ones. Some are very simple, with only one room with two pillars and Wuming Tower; some are complex with five rooms, six pillars and eleven floors. Due to their structural characteristics, some buildings with three rooms and four pillars only have flower panels and no open floor. The Minglou of Shifang is relatively complex, and the relief carvings are also very distinctive. If the stone is hard and fine, not only will the relief be vivid, but its fine patterns will not be lost after hundreds of years.
The fourth category is cement archway. This is the product of modern architectural art. There are not many new ones, and most of them are used for the relocation and reinforcement of ancient archways.
The fifth category is the colorful archway, which is a temporary decoration that is mostly used at the entrances of orders, temples, and markets. It will be dismantled once the order period is over. It is usually made of fir poles, It is made of bamboo poles and wooden boards, with colorful light bulbs installed on the top, making it colorful.
The sixth category is the bronze archway. It was designed and built by Zhu Bingren, a master of Chinese arts and crafts. It is the first bronze archway in China. It is 6.1 meters high, 7 meters wide and weighs nearly 100 tons. The archway is carved with lotus and other patterns. At the entrance to Miaozhuangyan Road, the ancient incense road in Mount Putuo, there are curved corners of colored glaze, exquisite copper art, and lifelike carvings of dragons, lions, and cranes. The memorial arch was inscribed "Cihang Pudu" by the president of the Chinese Buddhist Association, and the other side was inscribed by the original national Ye Xiaowen, director of the Religious Affairs Bureau, inscribed "Miaozhuang Ancient Road", and a couplet written by Wen Huaisha, a master of Chinese studies, "The sound of Yasong is full of Sanskrit sounds, and the clouds and moons are accompanied by Dharma and drums." The other side is written by the calligrapher of Xiling Seal Society, Zhu Bingren, the designer and builder of the memorial arch, wrote, "Through the six solemn periods of painstaking asceticism, the ancient path of the Three Vehicles of Wonderful Principles has always been the enlightened path." This is the beginning of the reconstruction project of Miaozhuangyan Road, a thousand-year-old incense road in the Buddhist Kingdom. The copper is not easy to be damaged, has more visual effects, and is also conducive to preservation.