Plate G8.no11: The Forbidden City: The Spiritual Valour Gate and Tongi River – Beijing (China)*

Gates are a big deal in China. Thresholds clearly have meaning; meaning is certainly heaped upon them – the titles for each, were imbued with such evocative terms, and in turn, expectation.
I doubt such language could ever find its place in my home city of Glasgow. But that’s culture for you, to each their own. And I must admit, I rather enjoyed the aspirational aspects of the language being applied. I felt as if maybe I’ve been missing out – and as an architect, I affirm, my belief that they are not wrong to recognise the significance, architecturally, of threshold…

*Further comment can be found in: E Books – A Walkers Diary (Vol 3)/Trek Reflections – China 2016