In this year’s 2020, the second decade from the turn of the century in Beijing the Capital of China also the People’s Republic of China, in which is also the year of the rat, marking its six hundred years anniversary of the Forbidden city that marks the transitional point of in between the middle of the Ming Dynasty (1368- 1644) transitionally from Nanjing to Beijing towards the Qing Dynasty (1636-1644-1911) …. The Imperial Palace seen so many countless seasonally transitional equinoxes but further its six hundred years is iconic, but it’s five hundred ninety nine years it marks it Autumn Equinox…. In which it only took twelve years to build the same of the Daming Palace of The Tang Dynasty Xian Imperial Capital only it was least twenty times larger…
In which coming back to season three is 北京卫视上新了故宫 Treasures in the Forbidden City … in which during September 2020 this month film for the Trendy Documentary show started film in Beijing with the same host of cast but company of new host celebrities from all walks of life…..among the core production of the 北京卫视上新了故宫 Treasures in the Forbidden City is spin off series that relates to the parent series in which is the Summer Palace, the Great Wall, the Temple of Heaven also the Historical site that located around the Beijing’s central axis …..
Wooden Construction. The Forbidden City’s beams and columns are made of wood, as are the walls that separate the halls into different rooms. Culturally, wood was the favoured material in traditional Chinese buildings.
The Forbidden City is the world’s largest collection of well-preserved medieval wooden structures. All the buildings in the Forbidden City are made using high quality wooden beams and columns, and there are many examples of outstanding carpentry.
For instance, its intricate interlocking roof brackets, known as dougong, which literally means “cap and block,” not only look impressive; they also have a crucial practical application. The brackets transfer the weight to the structure’s vertical columns, reducing the strain on the horizontal beams, which reduces the risk of the beams splitting or cracking. What is most impressive is that they don’t require glue or fasteners; they fit together perfectly because of the quality and precision of the carpentry. It is an innovation that could be up to 2,500 years old.
As well as using them for their practicality, architects later focused on making them more decorative, which is very apparent when you look at the intricate carpentry of the Forbidden City’s roofs.
Painting and Decorations. Most of the decorations on the buildings can be classified into three types: imperial drawings of dragons and phoenixes, geometric motifs, and Suzhou garden motifs.
Dragons and phoenixes are the major motifs found throughout the Forbidden City. Dragons were used to represent emperors while phoenixes represented empresses. The dragons within the Forbidden City, of which there are more than 10,000, are in many different styles.
Besides the major buildings, other pavilions and towers are decorated with Suzhou garden motifs. The same style of motif within the Forbidden City can be found in the classical gardens of Suzhou.
Auspicious Colours Though the majority of the Forbidden City’s walls are made of grey brick and many of the stairs and terraces are made from bright white marble, there are also many bold and colourful elements, and there are very deliberate choices behind the colours used.
Yellow is a dominant colour; it can be seen in the glazed tiles that are used for the roofs and the many decorations that are painted yellow. Even many of the bricks on the ground are made yellow using a special process. Since the days when myths of the Yellow Emperor became “history”, yellow has been said to be auspicious and imperial, and was used exclusively by Ming (1368–1644) and Qing dynasty (1636–1912) imperial families,
Red is also an auspicious colour, associated with happiness, wealth and power; it features prominently on window frames and exterior columns.
Green is also quite an important colour, because it signifies growth; it can be found of the roof tiles of buildings such as the princes’ quarters.
The Roofs and Eaves and Animal Decorations…One of the most beautiful parts of the Forbidden City’s architecture is its roofs and their eaves.
Yellow Tiles and Stately Roof Shapes……Only the imperial buildings of the Forbidden City were permitted to have yellow tiles: yellow was the emperor’s colour.
The roof shape of the Forbidden City’s most important buildings also had significance. Double-eave hip roofs were the classiest roofs in the empire, reserved for the top imperial buildings.
Animal statuettes have been used on the eaves of important Chinese buildings since at least the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). There are many kinds of animals on the Forbidden City’s roofs.
Each animal has different meanings. For example, dragons are used to protect against fire while phoenixes bring good luck and represent virtue. A lion represents the power of the owner and a Haetae (a bull-like beast reputed to butt wrongdoers) stands for justice.
The number of animals reflected the status of a building, with 9 being the highest number permitted in China.
The roof of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the most important building in China, housing the emperor’s throne, is the classiest roof in all of China’s history and the highest roof in the Forbidden City. There are 9 mythical animals at each of the roof’s corners: a dragon, a phoenix, a lion, a horse, a seahorse, a lion-like dragon, a fish dragon, a Haetae (bull-like dragon), and a flying monkey.
Imagines credits are of the Forbidden City –Imperial Palace –Beijing – China- People’s Republic of China also from the Series Weibo北京卫视上新了故宫 Treasures in the Forbidden City…
