Altar of Agriculture (Xiannongtan) and the Beijing Ancient Architecture Museum
MuseumTemple of Heaven, Xiannongtan & Liulichang
ALTAR OF AGRICULTURE (XIANNONGTAN) AND THE BEIJING ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE MUSEUM · XIANNONGTAN
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VERIFIED2026.09.11Temple of Heaven, Xiannongtan & Liulichang · 39.876°N 116.386°E
TicketedClosure day
The altar across the road from the Temple of Heaven where the emperor ploughed three furrows each spring to open the farming year — 1420, same builder, same axis, and on a good day fewer than a hundred visitors. Since 1991 its Taisui Hall complex has housed the museum of Chinese timber architecture: the 'one mu, three fen' ritual field and the Viewing-the-Ploughing Terrace restored in front, and inside, the finest surviving Ming ceiling in Beijing (the caisson rescued from the demolished Longfu Temple), plus a room-sized model of the old city. ¥15 at the door, no booking, closed Mondays (Tuesdays in summer), and the museum's own service page is one of the clearest in the city.
EntranceLine 8 Tianqiao station, then south on Yongdingmen Inner St and west into Dongjing Rd — the museum gate is on the north side of Dongjing Rd, about 700 m; not opposite the Temple of Heaven's West Gate despite the maps
Last verified 2026-09-11
How to book
Tickets at the gate or via the museum's WeChat / Alipaymini-programs (official); groups of 20+ book two days ahead by phone 010-63172150Verified · 2026-09Source ↗
ID details
No ID rule for standard entry; concessions require proof. Adult tickets: no ID stated; free entry on the document — over-60s with a seniors' card or ID card, disability card holders, minors, museum-system staff with a work card, servicemen, teachers on Teachers' Day, Beijing school groups of 30 or more with a letter of introduction (service guide)
Beat the crowds
Never crowded. Wednesdays before 10:00 the free-entry quota draws a small local queue; otherwise you will have the Taisui Hall to yourself.
Language
Bilingual panels in the main halls; Chinese volunteer tours at set times and a paid audio guide (official page lists 'audio guide' as a paid item, language not stated). Wheelchairs and umbrellas lent free.