Sui-Tang Era Overview and Chang'an City

Study Notes

The Sui-Tang period (581-907) was a time of cosmopolitanism and mercantilism in China.
Cities like Chang'an, Luoyang, and Guangzhou were major cultural and commercial hubs, attracting people from around the world.
Mercantile activities were facilitated by land and sea routes, like the Silk Road and Grand Canal.
Monumental architecture and city layouts, including palace designs and religious constructions, were hallmarks of the era.

Chang'an, the Sui and Tang capital, housed over one million people out of China's 50 million population.
Its layout featured an orthogonal grid with an extensive outer wall (84 sq km).
The palace-city and imperial-city were centrally located.
Streets were well-organized, with Vermilion Bird Avenue as the main thoroughfare.
The city was divided into 110 walled wards with controlled access.
Major streets were a significant 150-220 meters wide, with three lanes.
Markets were strategically located (east market for wealthier residents, west market for foreign merchants).
Religious institutions like Buddhist monasteries, Daoist temples, and Zoroastrian structures were present within wards.

Luoyang, though smaller than Chang'an, retained significant political and cultural importance as a hub.
The city followed traditional Chinese principles, and its planned grid was "perfect" in design, unlike the more complex structure of Chang'an.
Factors like topography and water supply influenced the symmetrical layout of the city, causing asymmetry.

Yangzhou was a vital southern trade hub, especially for salt.
While the city had a palace-city, its grid system was less structured than Chang'an's.
The city's significance was affected by the An-Shi Rebellion, but rebounded economically as a centre for trade in goods like tea, silk, and gems.

Palaces reflected the grandeur of the Sui-Tang era emperors. Specific examples include the Taijigong (Great Ultimate Palace), Daminggong (Great Numinous Palace), and Xingqinggong (Private Palace) which varied in their complexity and functionality.
Palaces often included specific symbolic elements and features like halls, ponds, and structures reflecting various ideologies.