Quanzhou Chaotianmen

Quanzhou Chaotianmen

Chaotianmen The Ming dynasty’s Longqing-era Gazetteer of Quanzhou Prefecture states: “The North Tower is the Chaotianmen of the outer city wall.” The Qing dynasty’s Qianlong-era Gazetteer of Quanzhou Prefecture, in the section on Historic Sites, says: “Chaotianmen was named after the expansion of the city by Liu Congxiao during the Baoda era (943–957) of the Southern Tang, when the northern gate was given this title.”

The reconstructed Chaotianmen, which began construction on August 4, 2001, is located at the current roundabout on Beimen Street. This city gate was designed according to the official architectural style of city gate towers from the Song and Yuan dynasties, covering a site area of 577.8 square meters, with a built-up area of approximately 700 square meters and an overall architectural height of 22.3 meters. The gate tower is a five-bay, two-story, single-eave, hip-and-gable wooden structure, with every process and craft meticulously detailed and refined to perfection.