The Imperial Capitals of China

This history of China’s imperial capital cities reveals “a picaresque chronicle of dynastic succession and court intrigue” across millennia ( Publishers Weekly ). Throughout the long history of Imperial China, emperors designed their capital cities in ways that reveal the heart of their dynasty. The ley lines of these cities reveal religious preoccupations, while the design of important buildings tells us much about the cultural influences of the period. The Shang Emperor of the third century B.