4) No winner, but all winners 

Today's sky-riding skyscrapers in Manhattan, New York, are architectural art born out of scientific technology. Such high skyscrapers cannot be built without high level scientific technology in material and dynamics.  Contemporary #architecture has its very genesis from the lengthy history of Western #architecture. This is the reason that Westerners have high esteem in their #architecture. In their eyes, any #architectural culture of any other region seems inferior to that of Western #architecture.

Westerners are significantly astonished by the numerous palaces in the Forbidden City, Beijing. However, they do not deem such #architecture as superior to Greece’s Parthenon, Rome’s Pantheon or Saint Peter’s Basilica. At first sight, the palaces are not large enough, and they have only been there for 100 years. Above all, it can be inferred that Westerners think so because building tall and huge buildings like Western buildings requires high-level building #technology before large land and labor forces. In fact, major Western buildings required much longer time and more demanding and complex #technology than Chinese buildings.

However, it is also problematic to simply view #architecture in the East as a result of a simple lack of #technology. Looking at the development and changes of science and #technology before modern times, scientific civilizations, including China, never lagged behind the West, but rather influenced the West a lot through the Crusades and East-West exchanges. This is the case with major inventions such as paper, compass, and gunpowder. Considering the massive scale of construction such as the Great Wall built in the 3rd century BC and the Great Canal at the end of the 6th century and the beginning of the 7th century BC, it is not certain that the civil and architectural techniques of the East lagged behind the West. The same is true of Korea, which has been directly influenced by China in terms of culture.

Figure 7. Wouldn't it be a preconceived idea to simply think that Western science and #technology are ahead? At least before modern times, Eastern science and #technology are on par with or beyond the West. In terms of architectural #technology, it is also meaningless to distinguish superiority through simple comparisons, as well as differences in concept and understanding of architecture. (Left) A compass invented in China. (Right) Gunpowder invented in China.

These differences, as mentioned earlier, stem from differences in architecture and aesthetics. In the East, architecture was understood from an #ecological point of view, and no matter how large the building is, it would be possible to escape from the point of view that it is a residential space where real humans can live comfortably. This stems from a practical and human-centered philosophy.

From an aesthetic point of view, wood has a more delicate and elaborate taste than stone. The roof and decoration on the beam are very important in wooden architecture, and both China and Korea are very stylish in this area. The beauty of this part is not splendid and magnificent like a stone building, but it is a delicate and delicate beauty that cannot be imitated by stone.

• How about architecture in Korea? 

In Korea, #pine trees, which are abundant in each region, were used as the main building materials. In addition, 70 percent of the country's land is made up of mountainous areas, so in order to blend in with and adapt to this environment, small-scale architecture was inevitable to prefer large-scale architecture to large-scale architecture. Also, rather than high-rise buildings with many floors, lower-level buildings can be found. This #characteristic of Korean architecture is the #characteristic of architecture inevitably formed according to geographical conditions and the region that cannot be avoided in any region or nation's architecture.

The unique #characteristics of #pine trees, a major material, also affected architecture. Basically, it is difficult to trim the wood precisely because it is highly viscous and easily twisted and there are many deformations. Even if it is refined precisely, it is difficult to assert that the detailed work of the architecture is precise or sophisticated because the deformation is too severe to exert its effect. So instead of employing many additional decorations that are irrelevant to the function, the decoration has become very simple and plain. It also sets the size and shape in harmony with the surrounding landscape, and makes it full of balanced stability without being crowded. In addition, the building is constructed in a way that complements and accentuates the loopholes of the natural scenery there. This can be said to be distinct from China's overbearing and independent architecture and Japan's standardized and handcrafted architecture.

Figure 8. The main material of Korean architecture is wood, among other things, #pine trees that are most widely and widely distributed on the Korean Peninsula. Hanok was designed and constructed considering the characteristics of viscous #pine trees.

3. Exploring Representative Architecture 

The architecture of the Eastern and Western worlds is not just a difference in materials, but rather a difference in architecture. Therefore, it is hard to say that it is meaningful to decide which order is better and superior. Therefore, when comparing Eastern and Western architectures with each other, it is important to understand the historical #characteristics of each society first.

With this in mind, this unit examines representative buildings of the East and the West in three main ways: palaces, religious buildings, and castles.