Drum Tower

Sister Building of the Bell Tower
As the sister building 4 years older than the Bell Tower, the Drum Tower is located to the west of the Bell Tower, at the south end of the northern side of the western street of Xi’an City. It's named as the Drum Tower because of the big drum placed on the tower, which was hit at dusk everyday for giving the correct time. In ancient China, especially from the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), the drums were used to signal the running of time and on occasion were used as an alarm in emergency situations.
“City within a City”
This is a smaller building, situated in a lively street which is filled with street traders and hawkers. This tower marks the entrance to the city's Muslim Quarter which is a lovely area to wander and observe. the feeling here is almost of a "city within a city" and the streets around this district heading up to the Mosque are like a small village crammed with people selling all kinds of weird and wonderful things.
Construction Era and Scale
It was built in 1380 (the 13th year of Ming Hongwu Era), and were rebuilt in 1699 (the 38th year of the Qing Kangxi Era) and in 1740 (the 5th year of the Qing Qianlong Era). The Drum Tower in Xian was initially built in 1380 during the reign of Emperor Hongwu of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and was renovated twice in 1699 and 1740 in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). It is a two-storied post and panel structure, 34 meters (about 112 feet) high and 52.6 meters (about 172 feet) long from east to west as well as 38 meters (about 124 feet) wide from north to south. The architecture style of the Drum Tower is a combination of the styles of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and the Qing Dynasty. However, the Drum Tower also has some innovative features. For example, it should be mentioned that there is no iron nail used anywhere in the Drum Tower.

Structure of the Drum Tower
Arriving at the Drum Tower you will see that there is an arched doorway in the centre of the south and north walls, doorway being 6 meters (about 20 feet) in both height and width. In the center of the south eave of the tower, there hangs a blue plaque tablet, on which is the imitation of Emperor Qianlong’s handwriting: Holy Place for both cultural studies and martial arts. The north entrance leads to Beiyuan Men and south to Xi Dajie. Visitors can go upstairs to the second floor, and enjoy the views around the Drum Tower. Meanwhile, you will notice that there are twenty-four drums in the north and south sides of the Drum Tower. These drums stand for the Twenty-four Solar Terms which is a kind of weather calendar created by the Chinese ancients in order to guide the agricultural production.

Drum Tower in Modern Times
In modern times, the Drum Tower is not used as a timer any more, but there are some new attractions for visitors to enjoy. In the year of 1996, a new drum, covered by a whole piece of cowhide was given a place on the Drum Tower. It is the biggest drum in China at present. What is more, visitors will enjoy musical performances on the Drum Tower. These performances will enlighten one on the power of ancient Chinese culture.

When you finish visiting the Drum Tower, you may round off your trip, by tasting a number of delicious snacks of Shaanxi in the Moslem Street (Huimin Jie) adjacent to the Drum Tower.