Historic Monuments of Dengfeng in “The Centre of Heaven and Earth”
Mount Songshang is considered to be the central sacred
mountain of China. At the foot of this 1500 metre high mountain, close
to the city of Dengfeng in Henan province and spread over a 40
square-kilometre circle, stand eight clusters of buildings and sites,
including three Han Que gates - remains of the oldest religious edifices
in China -, temples, the Zhougong Sundial Platform and the Dengfeng
Observatory. Constructed over the course of nine dynasties, these
buildings are reflections of different ways of perceiving the centre of
heaven and earth and the power of the mountain as a centre for religious
devotion. The historical monuments of Dengfeng include some of the best
examples of ancient Chinese buildings devoted to ritual, science,
technology and education.