The Development of Color in Roof in Ancient China

摘要

The roof in ancient Chinese building is slop roof. Therefore, roof color is very important in chromatic townscape. In earlier time, the colors in roofs were all Qing (a color of dark blue mixed black). Nevertheless, with the development of technique in tiles making, tiles color was becoming more colorful. However, the color usage in architecture in ancient China is regulated according to hierarchy and the theory of five colors and five essences. Even there were a lot of color tiles, only very few colors were used in emperors'and temples'roof. Those regulations and laws make the characters of roof colors in different zones outstanding and legible. With related laws and documentations, as well as the theory of five colors and five essences, this paper is going to research on the characters of the scape of roof colors in zones in different period, to draw out the turning points and reasons of roof color changes in crucial periods.