Tracing a vanishing landscape: the built environment of Peking-Hankow Railway in Beijing during the Late Qing Dynasty (1897-1911)

Artículo

Autores: Zhang, Z.; Cano Sanchiz, J.M.

Revista: Post-Medieval Archaeology

Número: 60.1

Año: 2026

Páginas: 56-91

Tuoli Station (Figure 11)

ABSTRACT: The Peking-Hankow Railway (PHR), which began construction in 1897 combining Chinese and European resources and efforts, was the first trunk line connecting China from north (Beijing) to south (Hankow, current Wuhan). In this article, we focus on Beijing’s territory and the Late Qing Dynasty (up to 1911) to shed light on a past international industrial landscape difficult to trace because of the profound transformations that have occurred in the last 130 years and the fragmentary condition of the material and documentary evidence. We adopt an archaeological approach that prioritizes the physical remains as a source of information and the spatialisation of data from different sources. To overcome data scarcity and fragmentation, we cross-read the available material, visual and written evidence, which is gathered through field recording and archival surveys. The information generated is input into a database built on QGIS, where it is analysed alongside geographical, topographical, geological and hydrological data. The study indicates that PHR in Beijing was modelled by a careful integration of European and Chinese ideas and interests, as well as by topography, natural resources, and both imported and local materials. All of which resulted in a built environment closely connected to its spatial and cultural contexts, and that combined international and regional characteristics.

KEYWORDS: Chinese early railways; industrial landscape; railway architecture; historical photography; globalisation.

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