By OGP Reporters (The source comes from the Palace Museum) / Members Contribute File Photos
Oh Good Party
Today, there are over a million rare and valuable works of art in the permanent collection of the Palace Museum, most of which were in the possession of the imperial families of the Ming and Qing dynasties. These art treasures include paintings, pottery, seals, steles, bronze wares, gold and silver wares, embroidery, sculptures, jade wares and lacquer wares. Furthermore, there are also court articles, including jewels, accessories, clocks, furniture and furnishings. According to an inventory of the Museum's collection conducted between 2004 and 2010, the Palace Museum holds a total of 1,807,558 artifacts and includes 1,684,490 items designated as nationally protected "valuable cultural relics."
Although the Forbidden City used to be an impenetrable fortress, the imperial palace is now a public museum —— the Palace Museum.
The Palace Museum is housed in the Forbidden City, the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is located in the middle of Beijing, China. For almost five centuries, it served as the home of the Emperor and his household, and the ceremonial and political centre of Chinese government.
Built from 1406 to 1420, the complex consists of 980 surviving buildings with 8,707 bays of rooms and covers 720,000 square metres. The palace complex exemplifies traditional Chinese palatial architecture, and has influenced cultural and architectural developments in East Asia and elsewhere. In 1961, the Forbidden City was included in the List of Key Historical Monuments under State Protection. In 1987, it was put on the World Heritage List of UNESCO.
Ancient China’s astronomers endowed the location with cosmic significance. They correlated the emperor's abode, which they considered the pivot of the terrestrial world, with the Purple Star (Pole Star)—believed to be the center of the heavens. Because of its centrality and restricted access, the palace was called the Forbidden City.
The Forbidden City is China's largest and most intact ancient building complex. It is laid out symmetrically along a north-south axial line. The well-designed palace appears magnificent, solemn and harmonious, representing the long cultural tradition of China and its outstanding architectural accomplishments five centuries ago. It is a truly superb masterpiece in every sense.
The Palace Museum is China's largest museum. Having been the imperial palace for some five centuries, it houses numerous rare treasures and curiosities. The collections in the following several galleries are amazing and well worth a visit:
1. The Treasure Gallery
Location: The Palace of Tranquil Longevity Sector (Ningshou gong area)
The Treasure Gallery is a series of exhibition spaces in the northeast part of the Forbidden City in an area of the Museum known as the Palace of Tranquil Longevity Sector. It consists of six gallery rooms displaying pieces from the imperial collection and extant accoutrements for palace life. All of these exquisite items are made of precious materials, such as jade, jadeite, gold, silver, pearls, and other precious and semi-precious stones. After second phase of renovations, the south and north galleries of the western corridor halls flanking the Hall of Imperial Supremacy (Huangji dian) with four spaces showcasing pearls, gold and silver, jade, and artificial potted landscapes. With an area of approximately 220 square meters, the south gallery in the western corridor showcases artificial potted landscapes artfully made with gems, gold, silver, pearls, coral, ivory, enamel, lacquered wood, and other materials. Imbued with auspicious significance, these splendid works were indispensable ornamentations in the Qing-dynasty (1644–1911) court during festivals and ceremonies. Also presented to the court as a form of tribute, the landscapes reflect unique characteristics of the lavish lifestyle enjoyed by the Qing imperial clan.
Tips:
1. An additional ticket of RMB 10 per person is required for admission to this area.
2. Potted Landscape with Red Coral (the largest piece of coral in the Museum’s collection) is the most exquisite pieces on view, don't miss it.
2. The Gallery of Clocks
Location: The Palace of Palace of Dedication (Fengxian Palace)
The Gallery of Clocks, Palace of Dedication built in 1656 (the 13th year of Emperor Shunzhi’s reign), was also known as the Hall of Ancestor Worship, as Qing emperors went there to worship their ancestors’ memorial tablets. It's home to a fantastic collection of Qing Dynasty (Eighteenth Century) timepieces about 200 clocks and watches from the imperial collection. These clocks and watches were mostly made in Switzerland, England, France, and Japan, with some Chinese made timepieces on display as well. The clocks and watches display various styles and exquisite workmanship, and their artistic value makes them very precious.
Tips:
1. One of the clocks which attracts the greatest attention can easily be seen on the left when you enter the Hall. It is a chiming clock, made during the Qing Dynasty, about 1797, by royal clockmakers. The clock is 5.85 meters high and it stands on a 2.6 meter-high square base. It can still run up for to 72 hours after it is well wound, regularly striking hours and quarters.
2. This hall a nice place to have a rest. While sitting on the chairs in the hall, you can feast your eyes on the collection of clocks and watches.
3. The Ceramics Gallery
Location: The Hall of Martial Valor (Wuying dian)
The Hall of Martial Valor is the main building in an architectural compound that lies to the far west of the Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihe dian). The side halls are reserved as the gallery of Books and Archives. This place is displaying over 1,000 highlighted Chinese ceramics ranging from 8,000 years ago to the early 20th century. It houses over 1.86 million cultural relics, about 370,000 of which are ceramics, mostly from royal families' collections, as well as one of the largest such collections in the world. Among the major treasures are artifacts produced by the Five Great Kilns of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), often referred to as the zenith of ancient Chinese aesthetics. The products of the imperial kiln of Ming and Qing dynasties, which stood in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, and exclusively served the royals. Some of these artifacts are displayed based on their functions, such as ceramics for weddings, dining tables, sacrifice rituals and religious ceremonies. The scene of imperial wedding porcelains of late Qing court copies the inner view of the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, which was used as a wedding house by imperial families. The scene of porcelains for imperial bestows display dozens of similar objects made during the different reigns of Qing emperors on a big three level stage.
Tips:
1. The big vase with various glazes made during Emperor Qianlong’s reign is a famous star known by Chinese people. It reflects the advanced ceramic technology of the past in China.
2. There are 10 emperors’ portraits hanging on the back wall surrounding exhibits to give visitors a feeling of etiquette.
4. Gallery of Painting and Calligraphy
Location: The Hall of Literary Brilliance (Wenhua dian)
The Gallery of Painting and Calligraphy's rich and comprehensive holdings of traditional Chinese calligraphy and paintings encompass not only extremely rare early masterpieces but also representative works from every historical period. These art works help in understanding the history of traditional Chinese calligraphy and painting. From the Jin (265-420), Tang (618-907), Song (960-1279), Yuan (1271-1368) dynasties, constitute a vital period during which Chinese painting and calligraphy became established with their own masterpieces and time frames, to Ming (1368-1644) and the Qing (1644-1911) dynasty Chinese painting and calligraphy blossomed, bringing painting techniques to the highest development.
Tips:
1. These works express unique aesthetics such as master Wang Xizhi (ca. 303- ca. 361) , Gu Kaizhi (ca. 345-406), and the "Four Masters of Song" (Su Shi [1037-1101], Huang Tingjian [1045-1105], Mi Fu [1052-1107], and Cai Xiang [1012-1067]), as well as Xianyu Shu (1246-1301), and Zhao Mengfu (1254-1322) etc. They have played an indispensable role in the Chinese painting and calligraph.
2. The book ”The Calligraphy and Painting Gallery of the Palace Museum“ by Forbidden City Publishing House.
Today, there are over a million rare and valuable works of art in the permanent collection of the Palace Museum, most of which were in the possession of the imperial families of the Ming and Qing dynasties. These art treasures include paintings, pottery, seals, steles, bronze wares, gold and silver wares, embroidery, sculptures, jade wares and lacquer wares. Furthermore, there are also court articles, including jewels, accessories, clocks, furniture and furnishings. According to an inventory of the Museum's collection conducted between 2004 and 2010, the Palace Museum holds a total of 1,807,558 artifacts and includes 1,684,490 items designated as nationally protected "valuable cultural relics."
According to a twenty-eight volume inventory published in 1925, the treasure trove left by the Qing imperial family numbered more than 1,170,000 items. This collection included sacrificial vessels and ancient jade artifacts from the earliest dynasties of Chinese history, paintings and calligraphy dating to as early as the seventh century, porcelain from the Song and Yuan, a variety of enamel and lacquer ware, gold and silver ornaments, antiques made of bamboo, wood, horn, and gourds, religious statues in gold and bronze, thousands of imperial robes and ornaments, textiles and furniture. Moreover, countless books, literary works, and historical documents were found among the antiquities.
After the founding of the Museum in 1925, particularly after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the collection was further augmented in various ways. For example, many precious artifacts were salvaged from a muddled assortment of apparently worthless objects. After more than a decade of painstaking efforts, some 710,000 treasured pieces from the Qing palace were retrieved. Meanwhile, national allocations, requisitions, and private donations brought more than 220,000 additional pieces of cultural significance to the Museum. These acquisitions made up for the lack of certain aspects of ancient Chinese history in the original Qing collections and included colored earthenware from prehistoric times, bronzes and jades from the Shang and Zhou dynasties, pottery tomb figurines from the Han dynasty, stone sculpture from the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and tri-color pottery from the Tang dynasty. The ancient paintings, scrolls, and calligraphy added to the collections were particularly spectacular. These pieces are all unrivaled masterpieces from throughout the history of Chinese art. Currently, the total number of works of art in the Museum's collection exceeds 1.8 million.
In addition, a workshop was established for the care of collection pieces in the 1950s. The workshop and subsequent department continue traditional forms of craftsmanship and utilize scientific methods in the restoration of damaged art.
With rich collections representing the broad spectrum of 5,000 years of Chinese civilization and the 600 year history of the Forbidden City, the Palace Museum has seen many developments and looks forward to carrying on the legacy of the past for future generations. Now, it is committed to the preservation of national heritage and the goal of serving as a model for museums around the world.
Tips
1. April 1 - October 31, open 8:30 to 17:00, ticket RMB60; November 1 - March 31, open 8:30 to 16:30, ticket RMB 40.
2. Some of the souvenirs are very interesting.