| The city wall since Ming Dynasty is today the landmark of the city of Xi’an; the wall is also the only ancient enclosure that has been completely reserved in China.The role of the wall has changed its role dramatically according to each period in the development of Xi’an’. Prior to the wall of Ming Dynasty, the wall of Tang Dynasty originally only marked the boundary of official district of the empire; afterwards, as the scale of the city shrink, the wall turned into the periphery that enclosed the city. It was later in Ming Dynasty that the scale and form of city wall was nailed down as the enclosure and the military fortress, separating the city from the countryside. After the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, Xi’an was being transformed into a modern city; the wall didn’t satisfy the industrialized demands under planned economy at that time. Thus, the wall was abandoned and left there as urban wasteland. However, as people paid increasing attention to historical preservation, the wall of Ming Dynasty was being protected again and was revitalized by the local government as the carrier of Xi’an’s image and culture. In 1980 s, Xi’an started the construction of City Wall Preservation Project and parks, with the support of World Bank, which invited more and more public life to the city wall.The life of local residents around the wall are also changing accordingly. The city wall is an everyday platform of various and rich activities for local communities, some of which are very distinct and unique. The revitalization of the city wall is an example of how cultural heritage of eternity and uncertainty could perform actively in a certain spatial order of modern city.The article investigates the city wall of Ming Dynasty in Xi’an, literally and graphically recording the social and cultural life of city wall to study what role cultural heritage plays in a modern and what relationship it has with contemporary citizens. |
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