Xinhua: China s Fujian Tulou was inscribed in the World Heritage List on 6th July on the 32nd Session of World Heritage Committee took place in Quebec City, Canada.
Fujian Tulou, distributing among the mountains in the west and south of Fujian, is known to the world for their unique architectural style, long history and rich culture. They have shapes of circle, square, oval, arc and etc. Fujian Tulou were first built in China s Song and Yuan Dynasties, After the development period in the early and mid Ming Dynasty of China, they became mature in the late Ming Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty, and the Republic of China, and are still used today. Fujian Tulou in the mountainous areas is a unique residential building complex made from rammed earth. It is a creative masterpiece in raw earth architecture. Fujian Tulou is mostly built by mountain side in rational layout. It absorbs the Fengshui principles in China's traditional architectural planning, meeting living and defense requirements of a family who live together. It cleverly makes use of narrow flat land in the mountains and local building materials such as raw earth, timber, cobblestone, etc. The many-storied building is itself a well-equipped, cost-effective and extremely solid system. It is both of high aesthetic value and marvelous defensive capabilities. In recent years, Fujian Tulou, represented by those in Fujian Yongding and Nanjing have been properly conserved and were nominated for the World Cultural Heritage.
