Sui-Tang Luoyang City Ruins

Sui-Tang Luoyang City Ruins

The Sui-Tang Luoyang City Ruins are a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Sui-Tang Luoyang City Ruins are located in downtown Luoyang and its surrounding suburbs in Henan Province.

The Eastern Capital of the Sui and Tang dynasties was one of China’s famous ancient capitals. It was first built in the first year of the Daye era (605 AD) during the reign of Emperor Yang of Sui, who issued an edict commanding Yang Su, Minister of the Department of State Affairs, and Yuwen Kai, Chief Architect, to construct the Eastern Capital in Luoyang. Two million laborers were mobilized, and the construction was completed in one year. The supreme rulers of the Sui and Tang dynasties resided here for over 40 years, with Empress Wu Zetian spending much of her time in the Eastern Capital, making its status second only to Chang’an. During the Five Dynasties period, the Liang, Tang, and Jin dynasties all established their capitals here. In the Song Dynasty, it was referred to as the “Western Capital.” It was destroyed during the wars between the Song and Jin dynasties. In 1954, the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences conducted a comprehensive survey of the city site, and archaeological excavations began in 1959, continuing to this day.

The ancient city is divided into three layers of walls: the outer city, the imperial city, and the palace city. The outer city has a perimeter of 28 kilometers, with walls entirely constructed from rammed earth, having a base width of 15–20 meters. The city has a square layout, with the eastern wall measuring 7,312 meters, the southern wall 7,290 meters, the western wall 6,776 meters, and the northern wall 6,138 meters. Stone slab drainage systems are built beneath the walls. There are eight city gates in total, one on each side. The Deding Gate on the southern wall has a gate ruins width of 28 meters, while the east and west gates are 7 meters wide, with a central passage that is 8 meters wide. The city streets intersect vertically and horizontally, with varying widths, dividing the city into numerous residential wards (li-fangs), forming a grid-like urban layout. The Deding Gate Avenue is the main thoroughfare, with remaining ruins up to 121 meters wide. According to the "Tang Six Codes," there were 103 wards in the city, with 64 currently identified. Each ward is square-shaped, ranging from 500 to 580 meters per side, enclosed by walls with a central gate, and intersected by a cross street at the center. There were also three markets in the city, which were nationally known commercial hubs, with the Southern Market being the most bustling. The market had three streets running in both directions and three gates on each side, offering very convenient transportation.

The Palace City is situated in the northwest corner of the outer city. Its east wall is 1,275 meters long, the south wall 1,710 meters, the west wall 1,270 meters, and the north wall 1,400 meters, with wall bases 15–16 meters wide. In the southeast corner of the Palace City lies the Eastern Palace, which forms its own independent city, measuring 330 meters in length and 1,000 meters in width. North of the Eastern Palace lies the remains of the Hanjia Granary, measuring 725 meters in length and 615 meters in width, covering an area of over 430,000 square meters. The granary contained densely packed grain pits, with 259 discovered so far. Among them, Pit No. 160 preserved 500,000 jin (approximately 250 tons) of carbonized grain. The Hanjia Granary was a large official grain storage facility at the time.

The Imperial City surrounds the Palace City on the east, south, and west sides. It served as the residence of the imperial family and the offices of various officials. The city walls are 1,670 meters on each side, with bases 14–16 meters wide, constructed from rammed earth and faced with bricks. The city has gates on all four sides, each consisting of a triple passageway with lintel-style structures above, and gate towers built atop. The central passageway was reserved exclusively for the emperor, while the side passages were for general use.

To the west of the Eastern Capital lies the Western Park (Xiyuan), built in the first year of the Daye era (605 AD) during the Sui Dynasty. It spans a perimeter of 200 li (approximately 100 kilometers), featuring artificial mountains, enclosed seas, palaces, and terraces, embodying extreme luxury. The Shangyang Palace was where the emperor conducted state affairs. Divided into eastern and western sections by water, the two palaces were connected by a rainbow bridge. The famous Tang Dynasty poet Wang Wei wrote: “The flowers and trees of Shangyang never know autumn; the Luo River flows through the palace everywhere.”

The layout of this city holds an important place in the history of Chinese urban development. At the time, the capitals of Japan and Korea were largely modeled after this city, exerting a tremendous influence. (National Cultural Heritage Administration)

Further Reading:

· First Batch of Henan Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Third Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units