dānbì 丹陛

https://architecturasinica.org/keyword/k000144

Terms

  • danbi (Pinyin without tones)
  • 丹陛 (Traditional Chinese)
  • 丹陛 (Simplified Chinese)
  • dānbì (Pinyin)
  • tan-pi (Wade-Giles)
  • cinnabar steps or platforms (lit.) (English)1

Note

    Danbi, literally meaning “cinnabar steps” or “cinnabar platform” (Kroll 2015, 74-75; 20), generally refers to the steps of palace buildings, and in some contexts, to the open platform in front of a main palace hall.1

    The term danbi originated from the practice of painting the steps of palace buildings with cinnabar. The earliest evidence of the use of danbi comes from the Lingqijing, which is traditionally dated to the Western Han. During the Ming and Qing dynasty dynasties, danbi became part of mainstream architectural nomenclature and was used in conjunction with danchi 丹墀, where danbi referred to the platform (yuetai 月台) outside the hall, and danchi referred to the ground in front of the danbi. However, danbi is also commonly translated as "steps." In literature before the Ming and Qing dynasties, danbi was not used for buildings other than palace buildings, while in the Ming and Qing dynasties, the scope of reference broadened to include Confucian temples, government offices, and other types of buildings.

    丹陛,一般指宮殿建築的臺階,有時也指宮殿建築前的露臺(月臺)。

    丹陛源於漢代宮殿建築用丹砂塗飾臺階的做法。現存文獻中最早見於相傳為張良(250或以前-186BCE)或東方朔(154-93BCE)所作的《靈棋經》。在時期,丹陛發展出一種指代露臺(月臺)的主流說法,並與“丹墀”產生關聯:即殿外月臺為丹陛,丹陛以南、台下廣庭為丹墀。但“臺階”的含義一直存在,並延續到當代。丹陛在以前文獻中未見指代宮殿建築以外的情況,但在兩朝用於文廟、衙署等建築中,呈現所指範圍泛化的趨勢。2

Related concepts

Works Cited

Any information without attribution has been created following the Syriaca.org editorial guidelines.

  • 1 KROLL. 2016. A Student's Dictionary of Classical and Medieval Chinese, 74-75; 20.Link to Zotero Bibliographic Record
  • 2 2021. ATTCAT 2021, accessed 2021.Link to Zotero Bibliographic Record

Broad Match: foundations

How to Cite This Entry

JIANG Jiayuan 蔣嘉元 et al., “ 丹陛 dānbì” in Architectura Sinica last modified November 17, 2021, https://architecturasinica.org/keyword/k000144.

Bibliography:

JIANG Jiayuan 蔣嘉元 et al., “ 丹陛 dānbì.” In Architectura Sinica, edited by Tracy Miller. Entry published March 24, 2021. https://architecturasinica.org/keyword/k000144.

About this Entry

Entry Title: 丹陛 dānbì

Authorial and Editorial Responsibility:

  • Tracy Miller, editor, Architectura Sinica
  • ZHUGE Jing 諸葛净, associate editor, Architectural Terminology
  • JIANG Jiayuan 蔣嘉元 and SUN Xiaoqian 孫曉倩, entry contributors, “ 丹陛 dānbì

Additional Credit:

  • Initial research and revision by JIANG Jiayuan 蔣嘉元 SUN Xiaoqian 孫曉倩
  • Website coordination by Yuh-Fen Benda
  • Data entry, adding citations by ZHUGE Jing 諸葛净
  • Data entry, adding notes, links and citations 2021 by HUANG Danni 黄聃婗
  • Preliminary research CMW 2021
  • Peer review by ATTCAT 2021
  • English proofreading by Aurelia Campbell Tracy Miller
  • Chinese proofreading by ZHUGE Jing 諸葛净 ZUO Lala 左拉拉

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