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Drum Tower

鼓楼

󰺂5.8

4.7/5

581 reviews

Selected for Night Attractions in Beijing

Historic landmarkNight view

Open Opening hours of Drum Tower

Recommended sightseeing time: 1–2 hours

Address:

Di'anmenwai Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing

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Phone:Ticket inquiry: +86-10-84036706|+86-10-84028113|+86-10-84027869

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小鱼儿DLing

4.0/5

Excellent

The Drum Tower is more than just a city gate; it's the "time heart" of old Beijing. Climbing to the top offers a unique experience, providing panoramic views of the hutongs and the opportunity to hear the intangible cultural heritage of drumming. If your physical condition allows, it's well worth a visit while exploring the central axis. Its beam-less arched structure features an immersive light and shadow exhibition, "Resonance," ancient timekeeping devices (sundial and water clock), and interactive sound installations that fully explain the ancient "morning bell and evening drum" timekeeping system. A touchscreen map allows you to simulate listening to the drumbeats that once resonated throughout the city, helping you understand the logic behind the central axis's urban layout.

Drum Tower attraction highlights

Some information may have been translated by Google Translate

It was built in the eighteenth year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty (1420) and rebuilt in the fifth year of Jiaqing in the Qing Dynasty (1800). Below is a city platform with a height of about 4 meters. The floor is five rooms wide, with double eaves and three drops of water, ash and tiles on the top of the mountain. The Drum Tower is where the Ming and Qing dynasties played drums to announce the time to the whole city. In 1924, it was changed to "Ming Shame Building" to display the real objects related to national humiliation when the Eight-Power Allied Forces invaded Beijing. The existing upstairs side is even more drum, with knife marks on it, that is, it was cut by the Eight-Power Allied Forces.

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