{{short description|Traditional style of Chinese architectural arched gateway}} {{Italic title}} {{Infobox Chinese | title = Paifang | pic = Tangyue Village, 2021-09-26 13.jpg | piccap = Tangyue Paifang Archway in She County, Anhui consists of seven exquisitely carved ''paifang''s built during Ming and Qing dynasties | picsize = | c = 牌坊 | p = páifāng | bpmf = ㄆㄞˊ ㄈㄤ | mi = {{IPAc-cmn|p|ai|2|f|ang|1}} | j = paai<sup>4</sup> fong<sup>1</sup> | poj = pâi-hông | h = pai<sup>2</sup> fong<sup>1</sup> | wuu = ba<sup>平</sup> faon<sup>平</sup> | l = memorial archway gate | altname = Pailou | t2 = 牌樓 | s2 = 牌楼 | p2 = páilóu | bpmf2 = ㄆㄞˊ ㄌㄡˊ | j2 = paai<sup>4</sup> lau<sup>4</sup> | poj2 = pâi-lâu | h2 = pai<sup>2</sup> leu<sup>2</sup> | wuu2 = ba<sup>平</sup> leu<sup>平</sup> | l2 = memorial archway edifice | order = st }} [[File:FancyGate.jpg|thumb|A decorated paifang in Shanghai]] A '''''paifang''''', also known as a '''''pailou''''', is a traditional style of Chinese architecture, often used in arch or gateway structures.
==Etymology== The word ''paifang'' ({{lang-zh|c=牌坊|p=páifāng}}) was originally a collective term for the top two levels of administrative division and subdivisions of ancient Chinese cities. The largest division within a city in ancient China was a ''fang'' ({{lang-zh|c=坊|hp=fāng|labels=no}}), equivalent to a current day ward.<ref>{{Cite book | isbn = 9780691191973 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=TSx6DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT729 | page = 729 | title = Chinese Architecture: A History | first = Nancy Shatzman | last = Steinhardt | publisher = Princeton University Press | year = 2019 }}</ref> Each ''fang'' was enclosed by walls or fences, and the gates of these enclosures were shut and guarded every night. Each ''fang'' was further divided into several ''pai'' ({{lang-zh|c=牌|hp=pái|l=placard|labels=no}}), which is equivalent to a current day (unincorporated) community. Each ''pai'', in turn, contained an area including several hutongs (alleyways).
This system of urban administrative division and subdivision reached an elaborate level during the Tang dynasty, and continued in the following dynasties. For example, during the Ming dynasty, Beijing was divided into a total of 36 fangs. Originally, the word ''paifang'' referred to the gate of a fang and the marker for an entrance of a building complex or a town; but by the Song dynasty, a paifang had evolved into a purely decorative monument.
==History==
During the Tang dynasty, it was called a ''wutoumen'' ({{lang-zh|t=烏頭門|p=wūtóumén|l=black top gate|labels=no}}), because the top of the two posts were painted black. A ''wutoumen'' was reserved for officials of rank 6 or higher.
The construction of wutomen was standardized in the ''Yingzao Fashi'' of the mid Song dynasty.<ref>{{cite book |author=Li Jie |author-link=Li Jie (Song dynasty) |script-title=zh:營造法式 |title=Yingzao Fashi |volume=6: Minor Woodwork I |section=The Construction of Wutoumen}}</ref> It consisted of two posts and a horizontal beam forming a frame and two doors. By the Ming and Qing dynasties, it was called a ''pailou'' or ''paifang'', and evolved into a more elaborate structure with more posts and gates, with a superstructural gable on top; the highest rank was a five gate-six post-eleven gable pailou.
It has been theorized that the paifang gate architecture was influenced by Buddhist torana temple gates.<ref name=tor4>{{cite book |author=Albert Henry Longhurst|author-link=Albert Henry Longhurst |title=The Story of the Stūpa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gs1sFlMGy2AC&pg=PA17 |year=1936 |publisher=Asian Educational Services |isbn=978-81-206-0160-4 |page=17 }}</ref><ref>Joseph Needham, Science and Civilization in China, Vol 4 part 3, p137-138</ref> Paifang have traditional Chinese architectural characteristics such as multi-tiered roofs, various supporting posts, and archway-shapes of traditional gates and towers.<ref>{{cite book|title=China's old dwellings|author=Ronald G. Knapp|publisher=University of Hawaii Press|year=2000|page=85|isbn=0-8248-2214-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Frommer's China|author1=Simon Foster |author2=Jen Lin-Liu |author3=Sharon Owyang |author4=Sherisse Pham |author5=Beth Reiber |author6=Lee Wing-sze |publisher=Frommers|year=2010|page=435|isbn=978-0-470-52658-3}}</ref>
==Style== ''Paifang'' come in a number of forms. One form involves placing wooden pillars onto stone bases, which are bound together with wooden beams. This type of ''paifang'' is always beautifully decorated, with the pillars usually painted in red, the beams decorated with intricate designs and Chinese calligraphy, and the roof covered with coloured tiles, complete with mythical beasts—just like a Chinese palace. Another form of ''paifang'' is in the form of true archways made of stone or bricks; the walls may be painted, or decorated with coloured tiles; the top of the archways is decorated like their wooden counterparts. Yet another form of ''paifang'', built mainly on religious and burial grounds, consists of plain white stone pillars and beams, with neither roof tiles nor any coloured decoration, but feature elaborate carvings created by master masons. Another form is in the Han dynasty style, and is two matching towers, such as in Beihai.
Outside of China, the ''paifang'' has long been the symbol of Chinatowns. The largest outside of China is in the United States: ''Friendship Archway'' at {{convert|47|ft|7|in|m|order=flip|abbr=on}} tall and {{convert|75|ft|m|order=flip|abbr=on}} wide, completed in 1986 at H and 7th in Washington D.C.'s Chinatown.<ref>{{cite web |title=Friendship Archway, (sculpture). |url=http://siris-artinventories.si.edu/ipac20/ipac.jsp?&profile=all&source=~!siartinventories&uri=full=3100001~!325492~!0#focus |publisher=Smithsonian Institution Research Information System |access-date=18 February 2011}}</ref> In Europe, the largest ''paifang'' spans Nelson Street in Liverpool, completed in 2000 and standing {{convert|13.5|m|abbr=on}} tall.<ref>{{cite web |title=Liverpool's Chinese arch ten years standing |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/liverpool/hi/people_and_places/arts_and_culture/newsid_8522000/8522792.stm |date=19 February 2010 |publisher=BBC |access-date=18 February 2011}}</ref> The first paifang in the United States was raised in 1915 as a temporary installation for the Chinese pavilion of the Panama–Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco,<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.academia.edu/4298726 |title=The Political Economy of Chinatown Gates |author=Allen-Kim, Erica |date=Spring 2013 |issue=15 |magazine=Pidgin |publisher=Princeton University School of Architecture |access-date=29 April 2020}}</ref> and the oldest still standing was erected in 1938 for Los Angeles, ''Chinatown West Gate'' on Hill Street;<ref>{{cite report |url=https://www.laconservancy.org/sites/default/files/files/documents/LAC_Chinatown_Final_0.pdf |title=Exploring Chinatown: Past and Present |publisher=Los Angeles Conservancy |access-date=29 April 2020 |archive-date=24 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624202121/https://www.laconservancy.org/sites/default/files/files/documents/LAC_Chinatown_Final_0.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> it was listed as a city Historic-Cultural Monument (#825) along with its counterpart, ''Chinatown East Gate'' (1939, #826) in November 2005.<ref>{{cite report |url=https://planning.lacity.org/odocument/24f6fce7-f73d-4bca-87bc-c77ed3fc5d4f/Historical%20Cultural%20Monuments%20List.pdf |title=Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM) List |publisher=Department of City Planning, City of Los Angeles |date=April 21, 2020 |access-date=29 April 2020}}</ref> The ''paifang'' at the entrance to Ottawa's Chinatown was decorated by Chinese artists using Chinese materials and techniques.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.canada.ca/en/news/archive/2010/10/ottawa-chinatown-celebrates-completion-new-gateway.html |title=Ottawa's Chinatown Celebrates Completion of New Gateway |date=October 7, 2010 |website= |publisher=Government of Canada |access-date=May 21, 2022 |quote=Construction of the arch included a team of technicians from China, as well as a group of artists who used traditional Chinese painting techniques to enhance the many ornate elements of the design. Glazed golden tiles, donated by China, adorn the nine roofs of the structure.}}</ref>
In the past, "Chastity ''Paifang''" were given to widows who remained unmarried till death, praising what was seen as loyalty to their deceased husbands.{{citation needed|date=May 2021}} {{Clear}}
== Gallery == === Mainland China === <gallery mode="packed"> File:Hengsheng Stone Arch, 2015-01-02 09.JPG|''Hesheng'' stone ''paifang'', first built in the Song dynasty, from Yinzhou, Zhejiang. One of the oldest preserved stone ''paifangs'' in China. File:Miaogouhou stone arch 1.jpg|''Miaogouhou'' stone ''paifang'', first built in the Song dynasty, from Yinzhou, Zhejiang. Located close to Hesheng stone ''paifang'', and is also one of the oldest preserved ''paifangs'' in China. File:Ornamental Gateway (Pailou) from Han Dynasty (202 BCE – 220 CE) across a Street Lined with Small Shops. Hanzhong, Shaanxi Province, China, 1875 WDL2092.png|Ornamental gateway (''pailou'') from the Han dynasty across a street lined with small shops. Hanzhong, Shaanxi in 1875 File:Dongsi Pailou 1920.jpg|Dongsi, an intersection in Beijing, had four ''paifangs'' in the 1920s. File:An arch pailou in honor of Ma Anliang.jpg|A ''paifang'' photographed in Jishishan, Gansu in 1933 File:Qian Ren Bao De Paifang in Wuxi Huishan ancient town.jpg|''Paifang'' built in the late Ming dynasty, in Huishan Ancient Town, Wuxi, Jiangsu File:Fahua Temple (54579269790).jpg|Glazed porcelain ''paifang'' at Fahua Temple, Datong, Shanxi. File:少林寺天下第一名刹牌坊 - panoramio.jpg|''Paifang'' of the Shaolin Monastery, Dengfeng, Henan File:WHU-pailou0.JPG|''Paifang'' of Wuhan University in 1920 孔林 牌坊 2.jpg|''Paifang'' at the Cemetery of Confucius, tomb of Lady Yu, wife of Kong Xianpei (72nd generation) in Qufu, Shandong File:63818-Beijing-Summer-Palace (28097577524).jpg|Decorated ''paifang'' at the Summer Palace in Beijing. File:Color glaze gateway Puotuo Zongcheng.jpg|Colour glaze gateway at Putuo Zongcheng Temple, Chengde, Hebei. File:Xidi1024x1360.jpg|''Paifang'' in Xidi, Anhui. File:钱王祠五牌坊.jpg|''Paifangs'' at the West Lake, Hangzhou, China. File:2008-12-11 千岛湖牌坊 - panoramio - situ001.jpg|''Pailou'' at the entrance to Qiandao Lake Scenic Area, Chun'an, Zhejiang File:Yonghe Gong Lama Temple.jpg|''Paifangs'' at the entrance to Yonghe Temple, Beijing File:中华武馆.JPG|''Pailou'' at the China Martial Arts Hall, Jinshitan, Dalian, Liaoning. </gallery>
<gallery mode="packed"> Jockey Club Tak Wah Park Park Entrance Archway 2019.jpg|Jockey Club Tak Wah Park, Hong Kong File:National Palace Museum Front View.jpg|''Paifang'' at the National Palace Museum in Taipei, Taiwan. File:2017-10-29 Paifang of the Wanhe Temple.jpg|''Paifang'' of the Wanhe Temple in Taichung, Taiwan. File:Taipei Liberty Square Main Gate at Night.jpg|''Paifang'' at Liberty Square, in Taipei, Taiwan. Looking west. File:鼓山代天宮 Gushan Daitian Temple - panoramio (1).jpg|''Paifang'' at Daitian Temple, Gushan District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan </gallery>
===Oversea=== <gallery mode="packed"> File:Dunedin Chinese Gates.JPG|''Pailou'' at Dunedin Chinese Garden, New Zealand. วัดโพธิ์แมนคุณาราม 普門報恩寺 Wat Bhoman Khunaram in September 2021 paifang.jpg|Paifang of Wat Pho Maen Khunaram, Yan Nawa, Bangkok, Thailand Bell Church, Baguio City, Feb 2025 (2).jpg|Bell Church, Baguio City, Philippines Shichi chinatown - panoramio (8).jpg|Shinchi Chinatown, Nagasaki, Japan Boston 220408070654 (52203064101).jpg|''Paifang'' at the entrance to Boston Chinatown, Massachusetts Friendship Arch in Washington, D.C.'s Chinatown LCCN2011630572.tif|Friendship Archway in the Chinatown of Washington, D.C. China Town, Manchester 2012.JPG|Manchester Chinatown, United Kingdom </gallery>
==See also== * Chinatown gate * Shanmen, gate of Chinese Buddhist temple * Hongsalmun, in Korean architecture with both religious and other usage * Iljumun, portal in Korean Buddhist temple architecture * Tam quan, a Vietnamese Buddhist style of traditional gateway * Trụ biểu, in Vietnamese temple architecture * Torana, an Indian ceremonial arched gateway * Torii, in Japanese Shinto shrine architecture
==References== {{reflist}}
== External links == * {{commons category-inline|Paifang}}
Category:Types of gates Category:Architecture in China Category:Building types Category:Buildings and structures by type Category:Urban studies and planning terminology