Nguyen An

Nguyen An
Chinese name
Chinese	阮安
Transcriptions Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin Ruǎn Ān - Wade–Giles Juan An
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese	Nguyễn An
Hán tự	阮安

Nguyen An (died 1453), also known as Ruan An^[1] or Juan An^[2] (depending on the transliteration system), was a Ming Dynasty eunuch, architect, and hydraulic specialist between the first and fifth decades of the 15th century. Born in Vietnam, he was taken as tribute from Vietnam to China and later became a eunuch and architect in service to the Chinese emperors. He, along with numerous architects, such as master designers and planners Cai Xin (蔡信), Chen Gui (陳珪), and Wu Zhong (吳中), master carpenter Kuai Xiang (蒯祥), and master mason Lu Xiang (陸祥), was an important^[1] principal designer and a chief builder^[3] of the Forbidden City in Beijing.^[4]

Under the reign of Zhengtong Emperor, Nguyen An had a major role in the reconstruction of the wall of Beijing.^[2][5] He was also a hydraulic specialist, who was involved in at least three hydraulic projects and had a flawless record.^[6] He died in 1453.^[2]

See also

• History of the Forbidden City

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Womack, Brantly (2006). China and Vietnam: The Politics of Asymmetry. Cambridge University Press. p. 182. ISBN 0521853206. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} Frederick W. Mote, Denis Twitchett, John K. Fairbank (1998). The Cambridge History of China. volume 7: The Ming Dynasty, 1368-1644 (part 1). Cambridge University Press. pp. 240–241. ISBN 0521243327. 
3. ^ Zhu, Jianfei (2004). Chinese Spatial Strategies: Imperial Beijing, 1420-1911. Routledge. p. 28. ISBN 0415318831. 
4. ^ "Vatican City and the Forbidden City; St. Peter's Square and Tiananmen Square: A Comparative Analysis. Page 5" (PDF). Asia-Pacific Perspectives and the University of San Francisco. Archived from the original on 2011-04-20. http://web.archive.org/web/20100627021008/http://www.pacificrim.usfca.edu/research/perspectives/mallas.pdf. 
5. ^ Zhu, Jianfei (2004). Chinese Spatial Strategies: Imperial Beijing, 1420-1911. Routledge. p. 28. ISBN 0415318831. 
6. ^ Tsai, Shih-shan Henry (1996). The Eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty. SUNY Press. pp. 202. ISBN 0791426874. 

Persondata
Name	Nguyen, An
Alternative names
Short description	A designer and builder of the Forbidden City
Date of birth
Place of birth	Vietnam
Date of death	1453
Place of death