Beijing Ancient Architecture Museum: Exploring Old Beijing Through Wood and Stone

Set within the Ming-dynasty Temple of Agriculture, the Beijing Ancient Architecture Museum occupies a historic complex of elegant courtyards and grand halls. It is renowned for its intricate brackets, glazed tiles and mortise-and-tenon joinery—most notably the celebrated Ming-dynasty coffered ceiling, whose dome is adorned with a brilliant star map. Impressive at first glance and endlessly rewarding on closer inspection, it embodies Beijing’s building craft and centuries of architectural wisdom.