Luoyang! Luoyang!
A name deeply rooted in the Chinese spirit
The most beautiful city in the hearts of countless people
(From "Partridge in the Sky · Written in the Western Capital" by Zhu Dunru of the Song Dynasty)
(Laojun Mountain after snow, photographer @Shi Yuan)
It once represented the pinnacle of ancient Chinese history
As well as the Longmen Grottoes, where multitudes came to worship
All evoke images of its bustling past
(Longmen Grottoes, one of China's four major grottoes and a must-visit for tourists in Luoyang, photographer @Xu Heyuan)
It is also a city filled with tragedy
Countless wars, countless rises and falls
Gradually silenced it in the mists of history
"If you ask about the rise and fall of ancient and modern times, just look at Luoyang"
Only then did Luoyang rediscover its direction
(Map of ancient Luoyang city sites, designed by @Zheng Yi/Planet Research Institute)
It was also a key hub in the industrial construction of the republic
And an unforgettable, eternal
Among China's many ancient capitals, Luoyang
Borders the North China Plain to the east and connects to the Guanzhong Basin to the west
(Luoyang's location and topography, designed by @Zheng Yi/Planet Research Institute)
Luoyang can truly be called "cradled by rivers and mountains"
Including the Xiao Mountains, Xiong'er Mountains, Waifang Mountains, Funiu Mountains, etc.
(Please view horizontally, sunrise and sea of clouds at Laojun Mountain, photographer @ Wang Yuwen)
The Mang Mountains lie to the north
(Scenery of the Mang Mountains along the Yellow River in Gongyi City; Gongyi is now part of Zhengzhou but was historically under Luoyang for a long time, photographer @ Guo Shaoning)
Countless small streams gush forth
(In the southern suburbs of Luoyang city, the Yi River flows through Longmen Mountain and Xiangshan Mountain, photographer @ Fu Ding)
(Please view horizontally, the Xiaolangdi Reservoir on the Yellow River in northern Luoyang, photographer @ Wang Yuwen)
With mountains and rivers encircling it, abundant water sources, and fertile land
Looking back to China 5,000 years ago
Numerous prehistoric civilizations had already emerged
Leveraging its central position in the Huaxia region
(Perforated pottery stand, unearthed at the Wangwan site in Luoyang, image source @ Visual China)
By around 4,200-4,000 years ago
Completely disrupted the development processes across regions
Cold and drought swept through Inner Mongolia and northern Shaanxi
While torrential rains and floods struck the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River
Only the Central Plains region, including the Luoyang Basin
Also enabled long-term exchanges with surrounding areas
Brought people more mature social organizational capabilities
(Agricultural progress was also one of the conditions for ancient people to overcome disasters; pictured is spring plowing in Luoyang farmlands, photographer @ Li Wenbo)
Establish an efficient and stable new order
The first dynasty recorded in historical texts
(Bronze ding with grid pattern, photographer: Ding Junhao)
The Xia king thus chose Luoyang at the heart of Huaxia
This is located in present-day Yanshi, Luoyang
It was a meticulously planned and constructed capital
Crisscrossing "well"-shaped main roads
Divided the city into different functional zones
(Layout diagram of the Erlitou site, illustration by Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)
It includes a main hall, corridors, courtyards, etc.
As well as an altar shaped like a round platform with a circular pit inside
(Restoration diagram of the main hall of Palace No. 1 at the Erlitou site, illustration by Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)
There were also numerous small and medium-sized residential houses
And various workshops distributed in the north and south
To meet the production and living needs of the entire society
Demonstrating it was a "technological powerhouse" and "manufacturing powerhouse"
(Seven-hole jade knife, photographer: Ding Junhao)
China's earliest bronze jue and bronze ding
This represented the most advanced bronze casting technology of the time
(Copper jue with nipple pattern, hailed as the "First Jue of China", photographer: Fan Peizhuo)
Turquoise can also be inlaid onto bronze
to create turquoise-inlaid bronze animal mask ornaments
(Turquoise-inlaid bronze animal mask ornament, photographer: Jimmy's Little Universe)
While one piece measuring 64.5 cm in length
is composed of over 2,000 turquoise pieces
(Please view horizontally, turquoise dragon-shaped artifact, currently housed at the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, photographer: Li Wenbo)
These substantial and exquisitely crafted artifacts
originated from the Xia king's control over resources and population
thus becoming symbols of royal power and order
while continuously radiating influence to surrounding tribes and states
fostering a stronger centripetal force among them
(Erlitou Xia Capital Site Museum, photographer: Shi Yaochen)
Similarly choosing Luoyang to establish its ruling order
its first capital, Xibo [bó]
served as the Shang capital for over 200 years
(Mother Drum Square Lei, unearthed at the Yanshi Shang City site, photographer: Li Qiong)
(From "Records of the Grand Historian: Annals of Zhou")
This center of the world, where tributes from all directions converge equally
Using this to awe the east and compensate for the capital's western bias
This became the prototype of the later "dual-capital system"
The Nine Tripods, symbolizing royal authority, were also placed in Luoyang.
This became the origin of the idiom "Ding Ding Zhong Yuan" (settling the tripods in the Central Plains).
(The He Zun, unearthed in Baoji, Shaanxi, contains a 122-character inscription mentioning King Wu of Zhou's plan to establish Luoyang, referring to it as "residing in this central state," the earliest written record of the term "China." Photographer: @Artery Shadow)
It marked the beginning of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, which lasted over 500 years.
(Wangcheng Park, built on the ruins of the Eastern Zhou capital. Photographer: @Li Qiong)
It remained the center of national economic exchanges and cultural interactions.
(A bronze gear unearthed from the Eastern Zhou capital ruins, possibly part of a mechanical braking device. Photographer: @Li Qiong)
In 221 BCE, Qin unified the six states.
The Han Dynasty, founded by Liu Bang, established its capital in Chang'an.
It created an unprecedented feudal empire.
Once again, the issue of capital selection arose.
(The ruins of Hangu Pass in Xin'an County, the location of the Han Dynasty's Hangu Pass. Photographer: @Li Wenbo)
Although Luoyang suffered repeated war damage,
it long served as the center of dynastic rule.
(A white jade cup from the Cao Wei period, unearthed in Jianxi, Luoyang, now housed in the Luoyang Museum. Photographer: @Zhang Yan)
Even the Northern Wei, founded by the Xianbei people,
moved its capital from Datong to Luoyang, the heart of Huaxia.
He fictionalized a romance with the goddess of the Luo River.
(Please swipe to view. "The Nymph of the Luo River" was painted by Gu Kaizhi of the Eastern Jin Dynasty based on "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River." This version is housed in the Liaoning Provincial Museum. Photographer: @Zhang Yan)
He composed the famous literary work "Ode to the Three Capitals" in Luoyang.
Sparking nationwide copying frenzy, driving up paper prices
(The Longma Futu Temple in Mengjin, said to be built during the Jin Dynasty as a sacrificial site for Fuxi, photographer @ Xu Heyuan)
Building numerous Buddhist temples and carving grottoes in Luoyang
The first officially established Buddhist temple in Chinese history, the White Horse Temple
Regarded as the "ancestral court" of Chinese Buddhism
(White Horse Temple, photographer @ Ding Junhao)
The Northern Dynasties' famous work "The Record of Buddhist Temples in Luoyang"
Including the most magnificent wooden structure in Chinese Buddhist history
The Yongning Temple Pagoda, towering over 120 meters in height
The Yingxian Wooden Pagoda, the tallest surviving ancient wooden pagoda in China
(Excavated clay sculpted human face from Yongning Temple Pagoda, photographer @ Li Wenbo)
Starting from the Northern Wei Dynasty, carving began on cliffs on both riverbanks
Here densely cluster over 2,300 grottoes from various periods
They vary in age and form
(Please view horizontally, panoramic view of Longmen Grottoes' western cliffs, photographer @ Sun Yelin)
Chang'an, with stronger defensive capabilities
Relatively western location, inconvenient for material transportation
Yet militarily weaker in defense compared to Chang'an
The Sui and Tang dynasties elevated the Western Zhou's dual-capital system
The most glorious pinnacle in ancient urban development history
(Illustration of the "Two-Capital System" implementation in Sui and Tang dynasties, mapped by Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)
Centered on Luoyang, stretching over 5,000 li
Making Luoyang the national hub of land and water transportation
(Illustration of the Grand Canal in Sui and Tang dynasties, mapped by Zheng Yi/Planet Research Institute)
Interlacing with 11 east-west thoroughfares
(Layout illustration of Luoyang City in Sui and Tang dynasties, mapped by Zheng Yi, CC & Yu Han/Planet Research Institute)
(Dingding Gate was the main southern gate of Luoyang's outer wall in Sui and Tang dynasties; the photo shows a reconstructed building, by photographer Tang Zhenming)
Covering an area of 430,000 square meters
(Besides the Hanjia Granary Complex, many granaries were scattered inside and outside Luoyang; pictured is the ruins of Huiluo Granary in today's Xiaoli Village, Luoyang, by photographer Huang Zhengwei)
When Empress Wu Zetian ascended the throne in Luoyang
Large-scale construction and palace expansions flourished in the city
Legend has it that peonies became popular in Luoyang from then on
It was also the largest wooden structure in Chinese history
The lower level is square, representing the four seasons
The middle level is dodecagonal, symbolizing the twelve hours of a day
The upper level is icositetragonal, embodying the twenty-four solar terms
(The Mingtang was initially built shortly before Wu Zetian's reign and destroyed during Emperor Xuanzong's rule; pictured is the current Mingtang in Luoyang's Mingtang & Tianatang Scenic Area, differing in size from the Wu Zhou period, by photographer Tang Zhenming)
She commissioned the famous Vairocana Buddha at Longmen Grottoes
With a smiling expression, inspiring reverence without fear
(Vairocana Buddha, by photographer Ji Ruihong)
Ceramics, lacquerware, gold and silverware
(Please swipe to view exquisite Tang tri-color pottery, all housed in the Luoyang Museum; photographer: Jiao Xiaoxiang)
They also brought their spices and jewelry
As one of the starting points of the Silk Road, Luoyang
(The Nestorian Stele of Daqin, unearthed in Lilou Township, Luoyang; photographer: Li Qiong)
"Four thousand miles from Luoyang, the barbarian cavalry rampaged for five or six years"
Yet encountered officials conscripting men by force in the village at night
(From Du Fu's "The Pressgang at Stone Moat Village")
At dusk I lodged at Stone Moat Village, where officials came at night to press men into service.
The old man climbed over the wall and fled, while the old woman went out to answer the door.
How fiercely the officials shouted! How bitterly the woman wept!
Late Tang poet Wei Zhuang parted from his beloved
"Urging me to return home early, where by the green window waits one fair as a flower"
"Spring scenery in Luoyang is fine, yet Luoyang's talents grow old in foreign lands"
(Throughout the Tang dynasty, literati often gathered in Luoyang, its rise and fall reflected in poetry, with Bai Juyi writing about Luoyang most frequently; pictured is Bai Juyi's tomb on Xiangshan by the Yi River; photographer: Li Qiong)
Persistent turmoil and excessive development
Having served as China's political and cultural center for over a millennium
The Later Liang, Later Tang, and Later Jin dynasties briefly established their capitals here
Luoyang remained a sizable city
Still a hub for literati and flourishing culture
(Luoyang was the hometown and teaching site of the Northern Song Dynasty Neo-Confucian masters Cheng Yi and Cheng Hao. The photo shows the former residence of the Cheng brothers in Song County, Luoyang, photographer @ Shi Yaochen)
However, with the sustained prosperity of the Jiangnan economy
the political center of the country also shifted eastward to
Kaifeng, which had better water transport conditions
and even named many places after Luoyang
(From Lu You's "Dreaming of Visiting Luoyang to See Peonies in Full Bloom, Waking to Compose a Poem")
Old and forgetful of worldly affairs, yet in dreams I still gaze upon Luoyang's flowers
(Guanlin in southern Luoyang, a sacred site of Guan Yu worship as it houses his head, is the only ancient architectural complex in China combining a tomb, temple, and forest. Its existing structures were mainly built during the Ming Dynasty, photographer @ Ding Junhao)
In 1932, the "January 28 Incident" broke out
The Japanese army attacked Shanghai, and Jiangsu-Zhejiang was in crisis
The Nanjing National Government temporarily relocated to Luoyang
But by then, Luoyang was already in ruins
Roads were unpaved, and there wasn't a single electric light in the old city
As a national defense stronghold in the Henan-Hunan-Guangxi theater
The city was scorched earth, with 60% of its urban area destroyed
(The Chiang-Soong Villa, located on Longmen's Xiangshan in Luoyang, built in 1936, served as Chiang Kai-shek's "temporary palace" in Luoyang, photographer @ Ding Junhao)
Only fewer than 3,000 artisans remained
The entire city seemed frozen in time
That divine capital once glorious in agrarian civilization
But with the launch of New China's socialist construction
Luoyang welcomed its rebirth in the industrial era
A key part of this was the 156 projects aided by the Soviet Union
(Illustration of the industrial nature of the 156 Projects, designed by Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)
Still facing severe external threats
Became a crucial consideration for project site selection
Luoyang's geographical advantages once again stood out
With a vast surrounding agricultural population and market demand
Highly suitable for the production of agricultural machinery
After repeated surveys and evaluations
(Aerial view of today's YTO factory area in Luoyang, photographed by Jiao Xiaoxiang)
Numerous upstream and downstream projects also settled in Luoyang
Including Luoyang Copper Processing Plant, Luoyang Thermal Power Plant, Henan Diesel Engine Factory
Luoyang Ball Bearing Factory, Luoyang Mining Machinery Plant, etc.
Totaling 6 "156 Projects"
Along with many supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and research institutes
(Distribution of major construction projects in Luoyang during the First Five-Year Plan, designed by Zheng Yi/Planet Research Institute)
Technical talents and workers gathered in Luoyang from across the country
From 1953 to 1956
Luoyang's urban population tripled
(Illustration of Luoyang's population changes, designed by Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)
Leaping to become an important base of China's machinery industry
(Luoyang's petrochemical industry is also very robust, pictured here is the Sinopec Luoyang Petrochemical Company factory, photographer @Jiao Xiaoxiang)
As population and industries increasingly gather
Unlike other ancient capitals that often develop around the old city
It separates the old and new urban areas for relatively independent development
Evolving into a typical "linear city"
The factory site avoided the old city and numerous ancient ruins
Choosing to build a new industrial district west of the Jian River
Hence, it was named "Jianxi District"
(Please view horizontally, panoramic view of Jianxi District, photographer @Wang Yuwen)
An industrial new city rose from the wilderness
Occupying one-third of the planned area of Jianxi District
Separated from the industrial zone by a wide green belt
It was divided into 76 "blocks" of varying sizes
Featuring distinct Soviet architectural characteristics
(Please view horizontally, Soviet-style buildings in Jianxi, photographer @Zhang Yue)
Densely populated with shops relocated from Shanghai, Guangzhou, and other places
Concentrated at the southernmost end of the entire block
(Henan University of Science and Technology moved from Beijing to Luoyang in 1956, pictured here is its library at night, photographer @Zhang Mengyao)
This industrial new city stands alongside the old city
Both self-contained and closely interconnected
Well-preserved the layout and features of the ancient city
This is also known as the
Like other old industrial bases, Luoyang
With the efforts of major research institutes
Traditional industries based on resources and labor
Various innovative achievements and products emerge endlessly
(Please turn your screen horizontally: The world's largest 18,500-ton forging hydraulic press is operating in a Luoyang factory, photographer @Huang Zhengwei)
The once-famous "Dongfanghong" in China
5G+ hydrogen fuel electric unmanned tractor
Robots applied in underwater detection, mining safety inspection, and other fields
Have also been born in Luoyang's factories
Luoyang has gradually become China's "Capital of Industrial Design"
It possesses Luotuo Institute and CITIC Heavy Industries
Two national-level industrial design centers
The glory of the "manufacturing powerhouse" in ancient Erlitou
(5G+ hydrogen fuel electric unmanned tractor, photographer @Huang Zhengwei)
Is increasingly becoming its development hallmark
Luoyang hosted the first "Peony Culture Festival"
During April and May when peonies bloom every year
Attracting tourists from all over to visit and sightsee
(Peonies belong to the same genus as tree peonies and are often planted together with them, showcasing the beauty of spring; pictured are blooming peonies in the Mingtang Paradise Scenic Area, photographer @Xueer)
Traditional culture has thus been revitalized
(Luoyang's Yingtianmen, filming site of the Henan Lantern Festival Gala program "Tang Palace Night Banquet," image source @VCG)
(Mengjin Sancai Town, a craftsman making Tang tri-colored pottery, photographer @Deng Guohui)
And the ancient capital frozen in bricks, tiles, and greenery
(Sui-Tang City Ruins Botanical Garden, photographer @Shi Yaochen)
Comprehensively recording the vicissitudes of past and present
(Luoyang Museum, photographer @Shi Yaochen)
The newly restored city gates and square on the original site
Display the splendor and glory of the past
(The rebuilt Lijing Gate, blending with Luoyang's Old Street, photographer @Ding Junhao)
Located south of the Luo River, Luoyang's new district
Features universities, parks, and sports venues
(Please view horizontally, the landscape of Luoyang's new district, photographer @Wang Yuwen)
(Xiyuan Overpass, photographer @Zhang Mengyao)
("Luoyang Metro Made in Luoyang," new trains transported from CRRC Luoyang to the testing site; Luoyang is also the only non-provincial capital city in central and western China with a subway, image source @VCG)
Though it rarely appears under the spotlight of the times
One can still experience its charm and legend
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