Discover China - Cultural Icons (Hardcover)

This magnificent book showcases many of the most awe-inspiring temples, palaces, monuments and man-made structures ever created. China's incredibly rich cultural history began many thousands of years ago, and while everyone has heard of the Great Wall of China, the Forbidden City in Beijing and the Terracotta Army, lesser known but equally amazing are the tulou (earth houses) of the Hakka people, the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, that has been providing flood control and irrigation for farming for over 2000 years, and the incredible art of the Dazu Rock Carvings. China is built upon ancient foundations and across this vast land are scattered cultural relics that have a huge significance for the world. The long, uninterrupted story of China's past, combined with the many cultural icons that have survived to the present, offer a unique window on the development of one of the world's great civilisations, and a way to learn about the important role China plays in the story of our world, both in the past and today. Selected and described by Chinese experts, the sites are illustrated with over 300 superb photographs, an introduction and extended captions and maps, telling the stories behind many of China's most significant cultural places.