Quick Answer: Who Was Liang Sicheng?
Liang Sicheng (梁思成, Liáng Sīchéng, 1901–1972) was a Chinese architect, historian and teacher. He helped establish the field of Chinese architectural history through systematic surveys of buildings.[1]
- Training: Liang studied architecture at the University of Pennsylvania, where he and his future wife Lin Huiyin (林徽因, Lín Huīyīn) worked with architect Paul Philippe Cret.[2]
- Fieldwork: The survey team he led identified the East Hall at Foguang Temple (佛光寺, Fóguāng Sì) as a surviving Tang timber building in 1937.[5]
- Planning: In 1950, Liang and a colleague proposed placing the new national administrative center west of old Beijing.[6]
His studies of Chinese architecture linked measured drawings and photographs to inscriptions and historical records. His father, the reformer Liang Qichao, had gone into exile in Japan, where Liang Sicheng was born.[1]
A drawing of an old hall can answer questions a photograph leaves open. It can show where beams meet or how a roof load reaches the columns. Liang and his colleagues used drawings to compare buildings and test what they read in older texts.
How Liang Learned to Read Buildings
Liang and Lin went to Penn in 1924. On their return to China, they helped establish architecture teaching at Northeastern University in Shenyang. Liang then joined the Society for Research in Chinese Architecture (中国营造学社, Zhōngguó Yíngzào Xuéshè), which documented buildings at a time when many had received little scholarly attention.[1][2]
The society’s 1932 field trip to Dule Temple (独乐寺, Dúlè Sì) was an early example of this approach. Its researchers recorded the timber structure, used photographs and drawings to make their observations comparable, and checked buildings against written evidence. A reader far from the temple could study the survey’s drawings alongside other records.[3]
How the Team Dated the East Hall at Foguang Temple
In 1937 Liang, Lin and their colleagues surveyed the temple in Shanxi. Its East Hall had large bracket sets supporting the roof.[4] The team made drawings and took photographs, leaving a record of how the hall was put together.[5]
Lin made out a faint beam inscription naming the patron Ning Gongyu (宁公遇, Níng Gōngyù). Her name also appeared on a stone pillar outside the hall. The pillar bore a date equivalent to 857 CE. Together, the two inscriptions helped the researchers date the hall to the Tang dynasty.[4]
Why Liang and Chen Proposed a New Center for Beijing
Liang and planner Chen Zhanxiang (陈占祥, Chén Zhànxiáng) presented the Liang–Chen plan (梁陈方案, Liáng–Chén Fāng’àn) in 1950. It proposed building new government offices to the west of the old city. The location would leave more room for the new administrative district and reduce pressure to rebuild within the historic city.[1]
They argued for preserving the old city’s layout, walls and historic buildings. The government did not adopt the proposal.[6]
FAQs About Liang Sicheng
Was Liang Sicheng the Son of Liang Qichao?
Yes. He was born in Tokyo in 1901 while his father was living in Japan after the Qing reform movement of 1898.[1]
How Did Liang Sicheng and Lin Huiyin Work Together?
They collaborated in architecture teaching and in the study of traditional buildings. At Foguang Temple, Lin’s reading of the beam inscription was important to dating the East Hall.[2][4]
Where Did Liang Sicheng Teach After the War?
He helped establish Tsinghua University’s architecture department in 1946 and headed it.[1]
出典
[1] Lou Qingxi, Tsinghua University. Liang Sicheng, a Pioneer in the Study of Chinese Architecture
[2] Penn Today. How a Class of Brilliant Graduates Shaped Modern Chinese Architecture
[3] Journal of Architecture. Survey as Method, Field Trips of the Society for Research in Chinese Architecture
[4] CCTV. The 1937 Identification of the Foguang Temple East Hall
[5] Liang Sicheng, edited by Vimalin Rujivacharakul and Luo Deyin. Liang Sicheng and the Temple of Buddha’s Light
[6] Tsinghua University Archives. Hu Shi, Liang Sicheng and the Preservation of Historic Buildings