The Temple of Heaven  

The Temple of Heaven is situated in the southern part of the city. It was built in 1420, encompassing 273 hectares (674 acres).The perimeter of the Temple of Heaven is 6,369 meters with 6 meters high.
The temple was the place where the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties worshipped heaven and prayed for good harvests. They came here twice a year, on the 15th day of the 1st lunar month and on Winter Solstice. At first, both heaven and earth were worshipped here. After 1530 when the Temple of Earth was built in the northern suburbs, only heaven was worshipped in this temple.
The temple of Heaven is regarded as one of the greatest architectural structures in the world. Some environmental artists and gardeners describe the temple as a place where people can talk to the heaven. In Beijing, four imperial temples were built during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911). At the southern end of the city axis is the Temple of Heaven. It is the most important of the four. The other three are the Altar of the Earth in the north, the Altar of the Moon in the west, and the Altar of the Sun in the east just behind the Beijing Friendship Store. All of them are still standing, but the Temple of Heaven is the largest group of temple buildings of its kind in China, nearly four times larger than the Forbidden City. The whole building complex was designed in a way that makes you feel close to heaven. In making the heaven-like structures, the designers made good use of color, sound, geometric figures lf the circle and the square, and changes in height. The combination of building and garden helps make it appear mysterious and magical.