Bell Tower of Xi'an

Location: at the city center of Xi’an
Height: 36 meters (118 feet)
First Built in: 1384
Number of Stories: Two
Layer of Eaves: Three
 

The Bell Tower, a stately traditional building, marks the geographical center of the ancient capital Xi’an. From this important landmark, extend East, South, West and North Avenues, connecting the tower to the East, South, West and North Gates of the ancient City Wall of the city.
 

 In 1384, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang in Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) ordered to build the Bell Tower to tell the time, dominate the surrounding countryside and provide early warning of attack by rival rulers. Nowadays, the square wooden tower is the largest and best-preserved of its kind in China.

It stands on a square brick base 35.5 meters (116.4 feet) long and 8.6 meters (28.2 feet) high on each side, and there is a 6-meter-high (20 feet) doorway on each side of the base. In the past, vehicles were allowed to pass through the arches, but as the city has grown the volume of traffic has become too great, so a bright, spacious pedestrian subway has been constructed under the tower. The entrance to the tower is from this subway.

It has three layers of eaves but only two stories. The three layers of eaves not only enhance beauty of the Bell Tower, but also reduce the impact of rain on it. Inside the building, a staircase spirals up. As a whole, the grey bricks of the square base, the dark green glazed tiles on the eaves, gold-plating on the roof, and gilded color painting make the tower a colorful and dramatic masterpiece of Ming-style architecture. 

Bell Tower and Drum Tower

About 200 meters (220 yards) northwest of the Bell Tower stands its “Sister Building” Drum Tower. The bell and drum in the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower were sounded day by day in the past, recording the flow of time.
 In ancient times, the bell was rang at 5:00 am every morning, indicating the start of a day and the city gates would be open. During key periods in daytime, such as 7:00 and 11:00, the bell chimed to tell the time. At around 19:00, the drum was beaten 108 times, indicating the closing of city gates and end of the day. At night, the drum was beaten to tell the time, instead of bell chimes: 2 beats for indicating 21:00, 3 beats for 23:00, 4 beats for 1:00, and 5 beats for 3:00.
 When it comes to the bell of the Bell Tower, the famous Jingyun Bell cast in 711 is non-negligible. The bell is inscribed with a prose handwritten by Li Dan, the fifth emperor of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and it’s the only bell with emperor’s inscriptions in China. With a weight of about 6 tons, the bell ring was quite resonant and could be heard by people living in the entire Chang’an city, which Xi’an was called then.

The Bell was once housed in the northwest corner of the Bell Tower but fell silent in Ming Dynasty although nothing had happened. Then it was moved to the current Stele Forest in Xi’an, and amazingly, its sound recovered later. The chime of Jingyun Bell was recorded and widely used in China nowadays, for instance, at 00:00 during Chinese New Year Gala to welcome the coming of the Chinese New Year. Currently on the Bell Tower, you can still find a one-to-one replica of the Jingyun Bell.
 The interior of the Bell Tower also looks impressive. On the first floor, an exhibition shows steles recording the history of the Bell Tower, and also some old components of the tower such as glazed tiles and ridge animal statues. Looking up, you will be amazed by the round dazzling painted patterns on the ceiling. On the second floor, calligraphic and painting works and also delicate porcelains are orderly arranged, and dark green beams of this floor are decorated with distinctive patterns. Walking along side corridors on two floors, you can not only admire 64 vivid story-based engravings on doors in the color of cinnabar, but also take a photo with the Drum Tower to the northwest.

Decorations Inside the Bell Tower

Bell Tower Pictures

 Brilliantly illuminated from around 19:00 to 23:00 on weekdays and from around 19:00 to 24:00 on weekends and holidays, the Bell Tower looks even more beautiful and attractive. It has become a trend to wear traditional Chinese costumes - Hanfu and take photos with the illuminated Bell Tower and also the bustling traffic flow around it.
In addition to roadside areas around the Bell Tower, viewing platforms in the Kaiyuan Shopping Mall to the southeast are also good places to photograph the tower. If you take metro to get to the Bell Tower, you can choose to enter the mall through Exit 4 or 5 of the underpass. On the second floor, you can take photos in a horizontal angle behind the red guardrail. On the fifth and sixth floors, a drone perspective is gained, and it’s amazing to photograph the whole tower and the setting sun. On the seventh and eighth floors, the higher viewing platforms allow the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower to be captured together.
  By Metro:
Take Metro Line 2 or Line 6 and get off at Bell Tower Station. The entrance to the Bell Tower is on the underpass and opposite Exit C.

 By Bus:
2. Xi'an City Sightseeing Bus
Almost all the city sightseeing buses pass by Bell Tower.
Xi'an Bus / Metro Search