Moon gate

{{Short description|Chinese landscape feature}}

{{Other uses|Moongate (disambiguation){{!}}Moongate}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

{{More references|date=June 2013}}

File:Doorgang in muur. Locatie, Chinese tuin Het Verborgen Rijk van Ming. Locatie. Hortus Haren 01.jpg in the Netherlands]]

A moon gate ({{Zh|s={{Linktext|月亮门}}|p=yuèliàngmén}}) is a circular opening in a garden wall that acts as a pedestrian passageway. It is a traditional architectural element in Chinese gardens. {{cite book |first1=Ying |last1=Xue |first2=Kathleen |last2=Gibson |title=Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Culture, Education and Economic Development of Modern Society (ICCESE 2019) |chapter=Moon Gate as an Evolutionary Interior Archetype |date=April 2019 |doi=10.2991/iccese-19.2019.75 |doi-access=free |publisher=Atlantis Press |volume=310 |page=327|isbn=978-94-6252-698-3 }}

The shapes of the gates and their tiles have different spiritual meanings. The sloping roofs of a gate represent the half moon of the Chinese summers, and the tips of the tiles of the roof have talismans on the ends of them.

File:Bermuda Moongate (cropped).JPG

Moon gates were incorporated into the architecture of Bermuda in the late 19th century, around the same time that the British territory began importing Easter lily bulbs from Japan for cultivation. Bermudan moon gates are slightly different from the original Chinese designs, as they are often left freestanding or attached to a low wall. In Bermuda, it is regarded as good luck for newlyweds to step through the gate.