Fangze Altar

　　Located outside Andingmen in Beijing’s old city, it was the site where emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties performed sacrificial rites. The altar was first built during the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty as a two-tiered square platform, facing north. Around the base of the altar is a surrounding water channel, over eight feet deep and six feet wide. The upper tier of the altar covers an area of six square zhang, while the lower tier is about over ten square zhang. The surface of the altar was originally paved with yellow glazed bricks during the Ming Dynasty, but was replaced with square stone slabs during the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty. On the lower level of the altar, there are two stone pedestals on each of the eastern and western sides, which once held stone representations of the Five Great Mountains, the Five Sacred Peaks, the Four Seas, and the Four Large Rivers, all facing southeast. Surrounding the altar are two layers of low walls with yellow glazed tile roofs and red body walls. Each of the four sides of the low walls has a Lingxing Gate: the east, south, and west sides each have one gate with two posts, while the north side has three gates with six posts. At the northeast corner of the altar stands a lantern tower. Outside the southern gate of the altar is the Imperial Earth God Chamber, and outside the western gate are structures such as the Divine Warehouse, Divine Kitchen, Ritual Vessel Storage, and Musical Instrument Storage, which were renamed the Earth Altar in the 13th year of the Jiajing reign.

　　The Fangze Altar, commonly referred to as the Sacrificial Altar or Worship Platform, corresponds to the Circular Mound Altar of the Temple of Heaven. It gets its name from the square water channel built around it, following the principle from the Rites of Zhou that states “the earth is worshipped at the central square mound in the marsh on the summer solstice.” The Fangze Altar is situated along the north-south central axis of the Temple of Earth complex and serves as the platform where emperors worshipped the “God of the Earth” (commonly referred to as the Earth Worship). It is also the main structure of Earth Altar Park. This grand and spacious altar for earth worship is not only the foremost of its kind in China but also in the world. The Fangze Altar was first constructed in the ninth year of the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty (1530). It was built according to the design of the “Square Mound Altar” located north of Zhongshan Mountain in Nanjing. Its square shape symbolizes the ancient belief in “the roundness of heaven and the squareness of earth.” The surface of the altar was paved with large yellow glazed bricks, symbolizing “blue sky and yellow earth.” The central altar platform is divided into upper and lower tiers, surrounded by a water channel and enclosed by two tiers of walls, with Lingxing Gates on all four sides. On the southern half of the lower tier, there is one mountain-patterned stone pedestal on each of the eastern and western sides, holding a total of fifteen mountain-patterned stone divine pedestals for enshrining the spirits of the Five Great Mountains, the Five Sacred Peaks, and the Five Mausoleum Mountains during worship. On the northern half, there is one water-patterned stone pedestal on each of the eastern and western sides, holding a total of eight mountain-patterned stone divine pedestals for enshrining the spirits of the Four Seas and the Four Large Rivers. At the northeastern corner of the altar is a lantern tower, and symmetrically located at the northwestern corner was a burial pit. The altar is surrounded by a water pool over eight feet deep and six feet wide. The upper tier of the altar covers an area of six square zhang, while the lower tier is about over ten square zhang. The surface of the altar was originally paved with yellow glazed bricks during the Ming Dynasty, but was replaced with square stone slabs during the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty. On the lower level of the altar, there are two stone pedestals on each of the eastern and western sides, which hold representations of the “Five Great Mountains,” the “Five Sacred Peaks,” the “Four Seas,” and the “Four Large Rivers,” all facing southeast. Surrounding the altar are two layers of low walls with yellow glazed tile roofs and red body walls. Each of the four sides of the low walls has a Lingxing Gate: the east, south, and west sides each have one gate with two posts, while the north side has three gates with six posts. At the northeast corner of the altar is a lantern tower. Outside the southern gate of the altar is the Imperial Earth God Chamber, and outside the western gate are structures such as the Divine Warehouse, Divine Kitchen, Ritual Vessel Storage, and Musical Instrument Storage.

　　The ritual of earth worship has ancient origins, with written records dating back more than 4,000 years. Historical texts document practices such as “the Xia people worshipping in May, the Shang in June, and the Zhou on the summer solstice in the central square mound in the marsh.” By the Zhou Dynasty, a complete set of sacrificial rites known as the “Rites of Zhou” had been established. Subsequent dynasties continued to follow these Zhou-era rituals, performing earth worship in the central square mound in the marsh on the summer solstice every year until the practice ended with the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1891.