About the book (from jacket flap):
Peking, the famous ancient capital of China, is without doubt one of the most fascinating places on earth. Imperial grandeur has here harnessed the finely attuned Chinese sense for colour and form. Over the course of a thousand years a city has grown up in which breath-taking vistas alternate with delicate corners of intimacy ad elegance. Here temples of the great religions of Asia – Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism – intermingle with the palaces, pagodas and pavilions of imperial pleasure and fantasy. Peking is indeed a unique city, and this book is the first ever published which attempts, with the aid of the most modern methods of photography and colour printing, to present its history in a coherent and balanced manner. Through this volume the reader will gain a broad view of the history, art and architecture of one of the oldest existing centres of civilisation.
