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SRCIC
Anniversary Activities: Touring the Forbidden City
2 Dec 2017

 

As one of the highlights of the SRCIC celebration series, the scheduled visit to the Palace Museum, the historical Forbidden City, will start in the afternoon of December 10, 2017 for close to two hours.

 

Following the Trump route, the visit will begin from the Tian'anmen Square, crossing the Golden Stream Bridge. Through the Gate of Supreme Harmony, the three key imperial palaces are known as the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Hall of Central Harmony and the Hall of Preserving Harmony. They once enjoyed the most dignified sociopolitical status in the empires and now serve as the main attractions in the museum.

 

 

 

The tour also includes the Cultural Relic Hospital where the antique restoration is made within the museum. The restoration masters treat their jobs for a lifelong career. The workshop of relic repairing earned the compliments from the first couples of China and USA then.

 

 

 

When time allows, there should be an arrangement of a visit to Shu Fang Zhai Palace, an architectural marvel that remains very much off-limits to the general public in this sprawling complex. Built in the 15th century, the Shu Fang Zhai was used as a study by Emperor Qianlong, one of the most celebrated leaders of the Qing dynasty, and as a theatre for the later Empress Dowager.

 

The Forbidden City was lived by 24 emperors for 500 years. It was first built in 1406 and finished in 1420. Experiencing several times of renovation and expansion, the original layout remained.

 

 

In 1987, the Forbidden City was listed as the World Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO. Juries evaluated: "The Forbidden City is the supreme power center in China over five centuries, with its landscape architecture, and huge buildings which accommodate 9,000 rooms of furniture and crafts, it has become a priceless historical witness of the Chinese civilization of Ming and Qing era.”

 

As Chinese President Xi once put, touring the museum is an indispensable way to understand Chinese history and culture.

 

Photos from people.cn, sina.com.cn, and Baidu Pictures.