Ebony Mountain Square

Ebony Mountain Square

Ebony Mountain Square

Ebony Mountain Square is divided into three sections — one main square and two auxiliary squares — namely the Solar Calendar Square as the main square, and the Jianyi Sculpture Square and the Ren'gui Sculpture Square as the auxiliary ones, covering a total area of 23,000 square meters. A number of ancient-style astronomical instruments are categorized into three groups and placed in the three squares respectively. The main Solar Calendar Square is surrounded by nine gnomon pillars, all made of granite. With undulating heights and rich shapes, each stone pillar is adorned with bronze relief carvings featuring taotie patterns, dragon motifs, and phoenix designs, giving the pillars a dynamic, upturned beauty that intuitively reflects the changes in time and solar terms.

In the auxiliary Jianyi Sculpture Square, the centerpiece is a replica of the “Jianyi” (Simplified Armillary Sphere), based on the instrument invented by the Yuan Dynasty astronomer Guo Shoujing. The entire Jianyi sculpture was cast using the traditional Chinese lost-wax bronze casting technique, with two dragon pillars coiled around both the northern and southern poles, presenting an elegant form.

In the other Ren'gui Sculpture Square, twelve copper ore stones are placed around the perimeter, each engraved with one of the twelve zodiac signs. At the center is the “Ren'gui” (Human Gnomon), where people can use themselves as the gnomon needle and measure time and constellations through the shadows they cast.