Atlas of China
Temple of Earth 地坛Dìtán
4A scenic area · National heritage site · Beijing, Beijing
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Days to budget
- Half a day
- City
- Beijing
- Region
- Beijing
- Type
- Heritage
- Listed as
- 4A scenic area, National heritage site
About Temple of Earth
Built in 1530, the Temple of Earth is where Ming and Qing emperors made offerings to the earth at the summer solstice, the northern counterpart of the Temple of Heaven. Its centrepiece, the Square Water Altar, is a two-tier square platform ringed by a water channel, the square form standing for the earth, and the cypress-planted grounds around it became a public park in the 20th century, with a Spring Festival temple fair held here since the 1980s.
How to get to Temple of Earth
Just north of the Second Ring Road at Andingmen, a few minutes' walk north of Yonghegong Lama Temple station on Metro Lines 2 and 5.
Nearby
- Lama Temple 雍和宫 under 10 km
Incense-filled courtyards and an 18-metre sandalwood Buddha in a working monastery - Temple of Confucius and Imperial Academy 孔庙和国子监 under 10 km
Courtyards of stone steles naming imperial exam graduates, beside the old Imperial Academy - Drum and Bell Towers 钟鼓楼 under 10 km
Beijing's old timekeeping towers, with drum performances and views over the hutong roofs - Shichahai 什刹海 under 10 km
Three linked lakes ringed by hutongs and lakeside bars, with open-air skating in winter - Prince Gong's Mansion 恭王府 under 10 km
A Qing courtyard mansion and rock garden, home first to a corrupt minister, then a prince
Also within 20 km: Bailin Temple 柏林寺 (under 10 km), Wen Tianxiang Temple 文天祥祠 (under 10 km), Xihuang Temple 西黄寺 (under 10 km), Former Residence of Soong Ching-ling 宋庆龄故居 (under 10 km), Zhizhu Temple 智珠寺 (under 10 km), Yuan Dadu City Wall Ruins Park 元大都城垣遗址公园 (under 10 km).
On the map
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