#北京 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #December2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies – #明中都#MingZhongdu #滁州 #安徽 #Chuzhou #AnhuiProvince – The first central capital of the #MingDynasty…..  #ChineseIntangibleCulturalHeritage  

明中都Mingzhongdu  The Ming Zhongdu is located in Fengyang County, Chuzhou City, Anhui Province, China, People’s Republic of China. It was the first capital built by the founding emperor Zhu Yuanzhang in his hometown of Fengyang. The construction project was presided over by Li Shanchang, the first civil servant of the Ming Dynasty.

The central capital of the Ming Dynasty was first built in the second year of Hongwu (1369) and was stopped in the eighth year of Hongwu (1375). It took a total of six years to build. The Ming Dynasty capital covers an area of ​​more than 50 square kilometers and has three inner, middle and outer cities. Its inner palace city (imperial city) is 120,000 square meters larger than the Forbidden City in Beijing.

The Ming and Zhongdu were designed in strict accordance with the “Book of Rites of the Zhou Dynasty: Kao Gong Ji”, with layout features such as the front dynasty and the back sleeping quarters, the left ancestor and the right commune, and a north-south central axis running through the entire city. When Zhu Yuanzhang issued an edict to build the Central Capital in Fengyang, he mobilized skilled craftsmen, soldiers and civilians from all over the country, no less than a million people, to build cities, palaces and palaces like the capital city system, which occupied an important position in the history of the development of ancient Chinese capitals.

Beijing Forbidden City in comparison with the 1062 meters long Odyssey Class – Beijing, China, People’s Republic of China.
明中都Mingzhongdu Forbidden city first Ming Dynasty Forbidden CityFengyang County, Chuzhou City, Anhui Province in comparison with the 1062 meters long Odyssey Class – Beijing, China, People’s Republic of China.

The rise and fall of Zhongdu

The Ming Dynasty was established in 1368. In the same year, the Ming army launched its Northern Expedition and occupied most of the Yuan Dynasty , ending the Yuan Dynasty’s rule across the country. The political situation has undergone tremendous changes. After analyzing the pros and cons of establishing capitals in Guanzhong, Luoyang, Bianliang (Kaifeng), and Peking, Ming Taizu believed that Nanjing was too far away from the Central Plains to control the country; Bianliang also suffered from poor people’s livelihood and was a A place surrounded by enemies. Therefore, in September of the second year of Hongwu, an imperial edict was issued to choose Linhao (today’s Fengyang) to build the central capital, “ordering officials to build cities, palaces and palaces as in the capital.”

The construction project of Zhongdu was presided over by Li Shanchang. In the third year of Hongwu, the ground was started and the construction of the palace city began. By the sixth year of Hongwu, the palace city and forbidden city walls and palaces were basically completed, and the construction of the outer city of Zhongdu also started. On Dingsi in April of the eighth year of Hongwu (1375), Zhu Yuanzhang “went to Zhongdu in person to inspect his merits and reward his hard work.” On the same day, he ordered the construction of Ming Zhongdu to be stopped on the grounds of “labor expenses”. Down, no other buildings in Zhongdu will be built, and unfinished projects will continue. After that, from October of the eighth year of Hongwu, the auxiliary buildings of Zhongdu City were renovated and the imperial tombs were built. In the 26th year of Hongwu, the outer city gates of Zhongdu were built. By the 30th year of Hongwu, the construction of Zhongdu City was completed.

After Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty stopped building Zhongdu, Zhongdu was not used as the capital. However, because it was the imperial hometown, the emperor’s relatives often trained troops in Fengyang and lived in the palace of Fengyang Zhongdu. Later, because Zhu Di moved the capital to Beijing, Beijing was far away from Fengyang. Princes no longer often lived in Zhongdu as in the Hongwu period. The palaces in the imperial city gradually became deserted, but there were still a large number of residents living in Zhongdu, and there were also many people stationed there. The army and government offices guarded and managed the central capital.

Location map of Zhongdu ruins in Ming Dynasty

Anhui Fengyang Mingzhongdu Site was selected as one of the “Top Ten New Archaeological Discoveries in the Country in 2021”

Current status of the Ming and Zhongdu palace city ruins
A schematic restoration of the Tushan Gate city platform in the Ming Dynasty (painted by He Lejun of Nanjing University)

On March 31, 2022, the high-profile “Top Ten New Archaeological Discoveries in the Country in 2021” was announced. The Ming Zhongdu Site stood out from the 20 archaeological excavation projects that were shortlisted for the final evaluation and was successfully selected.

Ming Zhongdu was the capital city built by Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang in his hometown of Fengyang. In the second year of Hongwu (1369), construction was ordered. Six years later, when construction was stopped on the grounds of “labor expenses”, the capital had begun to take shape. The city site consists of three layers of city walls, covering an area of ​​50 square kilometers. City walls, palaces, temples, central government offices, military facilities, together with road networks, water systems, kiln sites, stone quarries and other relics from the time of city construction, together constitute a huge group of Ming Zhongdu ruins. In 1982, its core part, the Ming Dynasty Imperial City, was announced as the second batch of national key cultural relics protection units, and in 2017, it was announced as the third batch of national archaeological site parks.

A schematic restoration of the palace in the former court area of ​​the Ming and Zhongdu capitals (illustrated by Li Wei of the Forbidden City)
The distribution of palaces and ancillary buildings in the former dynasty area of ​​the Ming and Zhongdu
The huge stone foundation unearthed from the front hall of the palace foundation site
Large scale stone structure at the palace foundation site

In 2013, taking the construction of the ruins park as an opportunity, the Anhui Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archeology formulated the “Archaeological Work Plan for the Ming Zhongdu Site”. In 2014, the archaeological exploration work of the Ming Zhongdu Site was launched, and the excavation officially began in 2015. In 2017, with the approval of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, the Anhui Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archeology cooperated with the Palace Museum and other units to conduct excavations in accordance with the excavation principles of “minimum area”, “minimum destruction” and “exhibition first” and in accordance with “layout, regulation, technology and process”. “Four academic goals, combining “field archaeology”, “digital archeology” and “technological archeology”, carried out continuous archaeological work on the Ming Zhongdu site and achieved a series of important gains. Through exploration and excavation, the layout of the city site has become increasingly clear, and the shapes and structures of individual building remains such as Chengtianmen, Donghuamen, and Waijinshuiqiao have been gradually revealed. On this basis, in 2021, we focused on excavation work on the Tushan Gate site and the core palace foundation site in the Qianchao District, with a total excavation area of ​​approximately 2,100 square meters.

1. It is revealed that the Tushan Gate is a single-door arch-type city gate. The bottom of the city platform is about 39.5 meters wide from north to south and about 23 meters deep from east to west. It has a rammed earth inner and outer brick structure. The rammed earth core is made of one layer of bricks and one layer of soil. “Jiawaza” ramming method. On the north side of the city platform, an east-west horse path is set up against the north wall of the city platform. It is also a structure filled with rammed earth on the inside and bricks on the outside. The south side of the city platform and the outer city wall are connected by a brick wall. The city platform, horse paths and brick city walls are all located on a rammed earth platform with foundation trenches dug underground, and there is a clear construction sequence. The foundation trough and platform rammed earth also adopt the ramming method of one layer of bricks and one layer of soil. There are also ground nails at the bottom of the foundation trough of the city platform.

2. After accumulated excavations from 2015 to 2021, the layout of the palace foundation and some ancillary buildings in the former area of ​​Guancheng was clarified by exposing the rammed earth platform foundation and its internal slats, in order to further explore the bay scale and construction sequence of the building. , construction technology, etc. laid the foundation. From the information revealed in the western half, it can be seen that the palace has a “work”-shaped layout of the front and rear halls plus a cross hall. Both the front and back halls have “Ninety-Four” bays, and the front hall leads to Baoxia. The hall is three rooms wide and seven rooms deep. On the west side of the apse are auxiliary buildings that may be corridors, gatehouses and Chonglou. The structure of the main hall, front and back halls plus a passage hall is relatively close to the palace architectural shape in the Song and Yuan Dynasties. The combination of ancillary buildings on the west side of the apse is very similar to the building combination at the same location in the Forbidden City in Beijing.

3. Excavations show that the palace is located on a rammed earth platform with a high front and a low back, similar to the practice of the Imperial Ancestral Temple in Beijing. The outer edge of the southern part of the platform is covered with a stone Xumizuo. A varying number of steps are found on the front and sides. The ground from the apse to the north is level with the top surface of the platform. The platform base is constructed one by one from various types of rammed earth, and a dense and neat platform is built using the “stone-clipping” method of one layer of stones and one layer of earth. There are many types of stone slabs, such as single type, two-piece type and four-piece type, which are constructed at the same time as the surrounding rammed earth. There are still foundation stones close to their original positions beside some of the stone walls. Among them, the giant stone foundation unearthed from the front hall has a side length of nearly 2.8 meters, a foundation surface length of 2.5 to 2.6 meters, and a basin diameter of 1.8 meters. Its volume is the largest at present. The foundation stone of a palace building is the largest I have ever seen. A rectangular loess platform with a length of 5.7 meters and a width of 4.9 meters was found in the middle and rear of the front hall. It was built earlier than the palace site and the palace wall. It is the location of the dragon throne in the palace and is exactly at the geometric center point of the entire palace.

Contents of this issue: The Ming Zhongdu ruins are located in Fengyang County, Anhui Province. More than 600 years ago, Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, decided to make Fengyang the capital of the world, named Zhongdu. Historians and architectural historians believe that during the construction, blueprints and model models were drawn for the reconstruction of the Nanjing Palace and the construction of the Forbidden City in Beijing.

Contents of this issue: The mystery of Ming Zhongdu has been deciphered beneath the surface of Jingdezhen, five hundred kilometers away. In 1990, the Jingdezhen Ceramic Archeology Institute unearthed an exquisite white porcelain water pipe, 26 centimeters high. Combining literature and stratigraphic analysis and comparison with physical objects, archaeologists in Jingdezhen confirmed that this unusual glazed building component was a sewer pipe produced for the construction of Fengyang Ming Zhongdu.

Contents of this issue: In the six years from 1369 to 1375 AD, a new capital city began to take shape in Fengyang, Zhu Yuanzhang’s hometown. Zhu Yuanzhang completed the national project of Zhongdu with extremely high standards, striving for excellence in every link. Seeing that his wish to “move the capital to Zhongdu” and “fix the tripod” is about to be realized.

Contents of this issue: In 1375 AD, shortly after Zhu Yuanzhang returned to Nanjing, he suddenly stopped the construction of the Central Capital on the grounds of “labor expense”, which shocked both the government and the public. The super project, which had devoted all the efforts of the whole country, came to an abrupt end just when it was “about to be completed.” As for the real reason, historical records are very vague.

The importance of new archaeological discoveries in Zhongdu during the Ming Dynasty:

1. New archaeological discoveries promote in-depth understanding of the Ming Zhongdu ruins

Because historical records are unclear. Archaeological exploration and excavation of key locations have continuously improved our understanding of the overall planning and layout of the capital in the middle Ming Dynasty. The excavation gradually clarified the scale and shape of each individual building, and explored information such as its construction process, order, and materials. It also gained an in-depth understanding of the construction, abandonment, and evolution processes of each group of buildings.

2. The excavation has filled a number of academic gaps.

1. The “3+2” layout of the Chengtianmen site discovered by archaeological excavations in recent years filled in the transitional link for the evolution of the second gate of the capital from three gates to five gates. It is the prototype of Beijing’s iconic “Tiananmen”.

2. For the first time, the architectural layout of the main hall of the former dynasty area during the Ming and Qing Dynasties is completely revealed. It fills the gap in the archeology of the capital palaces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties when other city sites such as Nanjing and Beijing do not have the conditions for excavation.

3. The discovery of the loess center point in the palace is extremely rare in excavations in the capital. It is located at the geometric center point of the entire palace city and is the location of the emperor’s dragon throne. It has strong symbolic significance and provides precious materials for studying the planning, site selection, and construction sequence of ancient capitals.

4. The huge stone foundation discovered at the palace foundation reflects the grand scale of the building. Its size is the largest stone foundation found in ancient Chinese palace buildings so far.

3. The excavation has supplemented key materials for the transformation of China’s ancient capital system from the Song and Yuan Dynasties to the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Documents record that Zhu Yuanzhang visited Kaifeng in person before the construction of Zhongdu in the Ming Dynasty. When he conquered the capital of the Yuan Dynasty, he also measured the palaces in the capital of the Yuan Dynasty, including the Zhongdu of the Jin Dynasty. In November of the second year of Hongwu, he read the Yuan palace map. Therefore, the planning of the Ming Zhongdu reflected elements of the Song and Yuan capital systems. For example, the palace city is generally located southward in the capital, the T-shaped square is set up, and the outer Jinshui River route is similar to the planning of Dadu in the Yuan Dynasty. The triple city wall ring, the five-gate system on the central axis, and the I-shaped palace are all directly or indirectly inherited from Kaifeng in the Northern Song Dynasty. city ​​planning concept.

Mingzhongdu was the first capital city in the Ming and Qing dynasties that truly embodied the capital system. Its planning was influenced to a certain extent by King Wu’s New Palace, but in turn it had a more profound impact on the subsequent transformation of Nanjing’s palace city and the capital construction of Beijing. The shape of the city gates in the northern and southern capitals, the setting of palaces and courtyards, the symmetrical layout of left ancestors and right shrines, and the internal and external Jinshui River system were all deeply influenced by the Ming and Zhongdu, and were deeply influenced by the planning of Ming Dynasty palaces and mausoleums in various cities.

The excavation of relevant sites along the central axis of the Ming and Zhongdus has revealed that they connect Song Kaifeng, Jin Zhongdu, Yuan Dadu, Ming Nanjing and Ming Beijing, filling key gaps. This connection also reflects the transmission of Chinese cultural genes from generation to generation. and the continuous characteristics of Chinese civilization. At the same time, it also has practical significance for promoting the study of the central axis of Beijing during the Ming and Qing Dynasties and its application for world cultural heritage.

4. The excavation of various buildings in the Ming and Zhongdu has added important reference materials for the study of architectural history.

The excavation of the palace foundation provides a reference for studying the palace layout of the Forbidden City in Beijing in the early Ming Dynasty, and finds the origin of the practice of the Imperial Ancestral Temple in Beijing.

The discovery of the craftsmanship, practices, construction sequence, and building materials of various types of buildings provides key basis for the restoration research on architectural construction in Zhongdu during the Ming Dynasty, and also provides reference materials for the research on other similar buildings.

The excavation of engineering relics such as kiln sites and scientific and technological research on building materials are also of great value in exploring the organization and implementation of engineering construction, and the production and circulation of building materials.

Since 2017, commissioned by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, the Palace Museum Archeology Institute has cooperated with the Anhui Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archeology to carry out archaeological work on the Ming Zhongdu ruins, and has participated in the completion of the Waijin Water Bridge, the moat, Xihua Gate, Tushan Gate, the core palace area, etc. Excavation work was carried out and a comprehensive survey was conducted on the Ming Zhongdu City Site and the Ming Emperor’s Mausoleum. At the beginning of 2019, the Mingzhongdu Archaeological Work Station jointly built by both parties was officially put into use.

The archeology of Zhongdu in the Ming Dynasty is one of the focuses of the archeology outside the Forbidden City, and it is also one of the important academic topics that the Forbidden City Archeology is dedicated to the archaeological research of palace-related remains. The archaeological discovery and research of the palace city of the Ming Dynasty is of great significance for deeply revealing the spatial form, structural layout, and regulatory ideas of the Forbidden City in Beijing. In the future, we will fully rely on the platform resource advantages of the Palace Museum, actively give play to the palace archaeological characteristics of the Palace Museum, continue to participate in and undertake various archaeological work on the site of the Ming Zhongdu, and base on the perspective of comparative research on the three capitals of the early Ming Dynasty, based on the archeology of the Ming Zhongdu Guided by the academic goals of the Ming Dynasty, the protection of cultural relics and archaeological work in Zhongdu of the Ming Dynasty will continue to be deepened.

#北京。 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #August2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies -The Palace Museum #ForbiddenCity Collections of Chinese intangible cultural heritage. 27th July- 7th August 2023

On July 19th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of Chinawas officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages.

 The multilingual website of the Palace Museum is committed to establishing an international website that is concise, clear, easy to use for overseas audiences, and fits the construction of the modern civilization of the Chinese nation, including tour guides, information, panoramic tours, online exhibitions, collection appreciation, cultural topics, etc. Rich immersive content describing of the most detail collection that housed within the Forbidden city collection… . 

During the Months of late July towards early August 2023 it has been serve Rainstorms in Beijing in which the  603 year old Forbidden city Drainage has been designed very well in countering those intense weather conditions….

去我们一起来读计划  In the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, a red silk embroidered gold Xi word butterfly pattern single cloak. Cloaks, shirts, waistcoats, etc. are all casual clothes worn by concubines in the Qing Dynasty, and they are also gorgeous and colorful parts of court costumes. According to Guangxu’s “Great Wedding Ceremony Red Documents”, the items prepared by Emperor Guangxu for the queen’s wedding include: a total of 236 pieces of casual clothes such as shirts, cloaks, tights, ragged coats, and mandarin jackets of various materials. Forty-four pieces of clothing, eighty sets of various inner garments, eighty pairs of various shoes and socks, etc. “Red Archives of Tongzhi Wedding Ceremony in the Qing Dynasty” also has records of the colors, textures, patterns and craftsmanship of the various garments in the queen’s dowry. This cloak should be the summer casual clothes of Emperor Guangxu, Empress Xiao Dingjing. The whole body is covered with red silk, mainly with gold thread, and the Chinese character “囍” is embroidered with hundreds of butterflies. Butterflies are a symbol of happiness and love, and the word “囍” in Baidie means a happy marriage for a hundred years….

去我们一起来读计划  In the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, a single cloak with bright yellow silk embroidered with peony circles and longevity patterns. This cloak is the concubine’s summer casual dress, with bright yellow plain silk as the ground, embroidered with lake-colored, white, and light-green silk threads to embroider peony flowers with folded branches, and decorated with flat gold embroidered group “Shou” in between. The neckline, sleeves and hem are all traditional auspicious patterns, woven with gold dancing butterfly tapestry and Yuanqing satin flat gold “Shou” peony border, the color matching is very coordinated, and the embroidery is exquisite, highlighting the imperial royal clothing​​ .

去我们一起来读计划 Qing and Ming yellow silk 囍 word mink fur coat. The Palace Museum has a wide variety of ready-made garments for empresses and concubines of the Qing Dynasty, available in all seasons and in various textures. Manchu people who originally lived in the cold region of Northeast China, their love for fur products has not diminished in the slightest after entering the customs. Wool products such as winter clothing and crown hats occupied an important position in the ceremonial clothing of the Qing Dynasty. What grade and type of fur people of different status levels wore was also determined in the system…..

[The Forbidden City opened a new exhibition in Xinjiang! 】On July 28 2023, “Glory of the Flourishing Age-Exhibition of Qing Dynasty Palace Jade Collected by the Palace Museum” opened in the “Forbidden City Hall” of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Museum. This exhibition is also the first appearance of the “Forbidden City Hall” of the museum. For thousands of years, the excellent cultures of various ethnic groups have converged and jointly created a brilliant Chinese civilization. Among them, jades in the Qing Dynasty used a large number of unique Xinjiang jade materials, with excellent materials, regular shapes, and designs .

去我们一起来读计划 Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty, a small waistcoat with pink and gold 囍 word butterfly pattern on the front. This vest is the queen’s daily casual dress, also known as tight-fitting, round neck, double-breasted, sleeveless, with open skirts on both sides and back. The pink ground on the front and back and the back, as well as the stone-blue garment hem, are woven with the word “囍”, interspersed with a pair of colorful butterflies dancing together, implying happy reunion. The rich and colorful dowry costumes of the empress not only reflect the noble status of the empress and the exquisiteness of the wedding in the emperor’s home, but also show the exquisite craftsmanship of our country’s weaving and embroidery.

Qing, Qing Kuan, etc., the queen’s dowry picture of the big wedding picture. This is the end of the dowry procession in “The Queen’s Dowry Picture”. The scene depicted is the dowry procession walking outside the Donghua Gate, carrying some red sandalwood carved boxes and a pair of red sandalwood carved cabinets as the final push. So far, the queen The 200 dowries carried into the palace were all carried into the palace, and the two-day dowry delivery event came to an end. During the entire process of the dowry entering the palace, in order to protect the safety of the dowry all the way, the troop carrying the dowry is composed of the school lieutenant Luan Yiwei and various personnel from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. , the Ministry of Internal Affairs, etc. will be taken care of along the way.

There is a time to see the end of the day when the clouds are cleared. When the wind stops and the rain stops, enjoy the beautiful sunlight and the fragrance of golden stamens together. Hello August….!

去我们一起来读计划 Qing, Qingkuan, etc., set up a welcome picture (partial) in the album of big wedding pictures. In the evening before the big wedding, the emperor of the Qing Dynasty held a grand canonization ceremony at the queen’s mansion first, and then welcomed the queen into the palace when she was a child. Although registration and welcome are two consecutive etiquettes, they are actually completed over two days. The sixth volume of Emperor Guangxu’s “Big Marriage Picture” “Collecting the Picture of Ingratiation” depicts the process of these two pre-wedding ceremonies, including 16 pages of images and 6 pages of illustrations. The following set of pictures are all taken from this volume. This is part of the page of “Picture of Salutation at the Palace of Compassion and Peace” The wedding ceremony of Emperor Guangxu was scheduled to be held on the twenty-seventh day of the first lunar month in the fifteenth year (1889). On the twenty-sixth day of the first lunar month, before the welcoming procession set off, Emperor Guangxu went to the Cining Palace to salute Empress Dowager Cixi and announce that he was about to become a queen. The eight pieces of gold in the empress dowager’s ceremonial car are located in Ciningmen Square. On the east side are the gold furnace, gold incense box, gold spit pot, and gold bottle; , Jinping, and the golden chair in the south.

去我们一起来读计划  Qing, Qingkuan, etc., set up a welcome picture in the album of big wedding pictures. These two pages show spectacular scenes, collectively known as “Pictures of Reception and Reception in the Palace of Imperial Harmony”. After Emperor Guangxu saluted the Empress Dowager in the Palace of Compassion and Ning, he was led by officials from the Ministry of Rites to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, where he first received the congratulations from the ministers, and then appointed envoys. In the picture, the senior scholar stands under the east eaves of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the cabinet officials, publicity officials, and officials of the Ministry of Rituals stand behind the senior scholar, the envoys, deputy envoys, and saluting princes and ministers kneel on Majesty Dan, and His Majesty Dan is more Saluting civil and military officials ranked according to the grade level according to the grade mountain mark, waiting for the emperor to come…..

去我们一起来读计划Qing , Qingkuan, etc., the album of the big wedding picture sets up a welcome picture (partial); the interior view of the Hall of Supreme Harmony. This is a part of the “Picture of the Welcome Ceremony in the Book of the Palace of Imperial Harmony”. On the screen, there is a festival table in the middle of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, with a red lacquer festival frame on the table. There are book cases and treasure cases on the left and right, and a gold box on the top, which is used to hold the gold book and the queen’s treasure. Under the eaves of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, there are eight pieces of gold from the Emperor’s Fajia brine book, namely, two gold furnaces, two gold vases, two gold incense boxes, one gold spit pot, and one gold washbasin. Under the east and west eaves of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, there are Zhonghe Shaoyue chime bells, chime chimes and other musical instruments.

去我们一起来读计划Qing , Qingkuan, etc., the album of the big wedding picture sets up a welcome picture (partial); the interior view of the Hall of Supreme Harmony. This is a part of the “Picture of the Welcome Ceremony in the Book of the Palace of Imperial Harmony”. On the screen, there is a festival table in the middle of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, with a red lacquer festival frame on the table. There are book cases and treasure cases on the left and right, and a gold box on the top, which is used to hold the gold book and the queen’s treasure. Under the eaves of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, there are eight pieces of gold from the Emperor’s Fajia brine book, namely, two gold furnaces, two gold vases, two gold incense boxes, one gold spit pot, and one gold washbasin. Under the east and west eaves of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, there are Zhonghe Shaoyue chime bells, chime chimes and other musical instruments.

The umbrella cover (replica) in the emperor’s brine book. The umbrella covers in the emperor’s law driving brine book include: curved nine-dragon cover, emerald green cover, purple sesame cover, straight handle nine-dragon cover, five-color flower cover, five-color dragon cover and red and purple two-color square umbrellas. The picture shows the five-color flower cap with straight handle.

The fan (replica) in the emperor’s brine book. The fans in the emperor’s law driving brine book include longevity fans, double dragon fans, single dragon fans, peacock fans, pheasant tail fans, and phoenix fans. They are square and round in different shapes, and red, yellow, and green. The four pieces shown in the middle are fans, the one on the right is a battle-axe, and the one on the left is a leopard-tailed gun used by the leopard-tailed squad.

去我们一起来读计划 Qing, Qingkuan, etc., set up a welcome picture (partial) in the album of big wedding pictures. This is a part of the “Picture of the Welcome Ceremony in the Book of the Palace of Imperial Harmony”. It depicts princes and ministers, civil and military officials, and chief and deputy envoys standing in sequence, waiting for the emperor to preside over the ceremony in person, and appointing envoys to go to the queen’s residence for registration and welcome ceremony. The details in the picture can be seen in various fans, buildings, flags, banners, Jing, flags, weapons, etc. in the ceremonial guard of the halogen book, and the musical instruments of Danbi Dale are placed under the eaves on both sides of the Taihe Gate.

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..

#北京。 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #July2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies -The Palace Museum #ForbiddenCity Collections of Chinese intangible cultural heritage.  Collection 20th   to 20th July 2023…

On July 19th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of Chinawas officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages.

 The multilingual website of the Palace Museum is committed to establishing an international website that is concise, clear, easy to use for overseas audiences, and fits the construction of the modern civilization of the Chinese nation, including tour guides, information, panoramic tours, online exhibitions, collection appreciation, cultural topics, etc. Rich immersive content describing of the most detail collection that housed within the Forbidden city collection… . 

In the Qing Dynasty, gold-plated copper dots emerald inlaid with jewelry and the word Tianhua; in Qing Dynasty, gold-plated jewelry with two dragon knots. Tin flowers are the main decoration on the tin, and the number of tin flowers is one of the factors that determine the grade of the tin. Tin flowers come in a variety of shapes, and depending on their location, they are called knots, face hairpins, green strips, tin tails, head faces, etc. Gold-plated copper dot emerald jewels inlaid with the word “囍” is a set of thirteen pieces, with gold-plated copper dot emerald as the base, and a bead embedded in the character “囍” made of red coral rice beads. Judging from the decorative theme, this tin is made for a big wedding. Another piece of gold inlaid jewelry is a two-dragon knot, in the shape of two dragons playing with gold silk. The center of the fire bead is inlaid with a large ruby, surrounded by green and auspicious clouds. The pendant is made of pearls threaded into eleven strings of tassels, and the corners of the pendant are red sapphires. This kind of decorative knot has the highest standard and is exclusively used by empress dowagers and empresses.

Qing Daoguang, silver-plated hairpin with gold-plated emerald dots inlaid with gemstones, and Tongzhi in Qing Dynasty, silver-plated hairpin with gold-plated gemstones and fake beads and phoenix pattern. In the jewelry of concubines, there are a large number of hairpins of various types, and although they have different themes, they all have auspicious meanings. The number of pearls and the types of gemstones on these jewelry reflect the rank and status of the jewelry owner. Three pieces of silver – plated emerald “囍” character hairpins, with pearls inlaid on the center “囍” character, “囍” character above and below…

In the Qing Dynasty, the golden chiseled word butterfly pattern is flat and square. Bianfang is a unique headdress for Manchu noblewomen in the Qing Dynasty, and it is also a bracket used for dressing up the “two heads”. It has a similar function to the long hairpin used by Han women. This flat square is made of gold, chiseled with sesame seeds as the ground, with a circle of flowers and grass patterns chiseled on the frame, six dancing butterflies and five “囍” characters chiseled inside the frame, and a bat chiseled on the head, implying the double arrival of happiness and happiness. It is a special decoration for the queen’s wedding…

Clear, silver-plated dots emerald beads tassels. Tassels usually refer to drooping tassels, threaded by silk threads, feathers or beads, used on clothes or hair ornaments, also known as step shakes. This tassel is composed of silver-plated dot emerald poles and three strings of pearls. The red coral is embellished with seven “囍” characters, and the pendant corners are three rubies. The head of the pole and the knot in the middle are dotted emerald chiseled bats and money patterns, which means “blessings come to you”. This tassel should be used for the queen’s wedding. Every auspicious festival in the palace, concubines have to wear such ornaments.

Qing Guangxu, stone blue silk embroidered with eight groups of magpies, plums, coral beads and Chinese characters, with water and auspicious clothing materials. The queen’s dowry includes all kinds of ready-made clothes and materials for the four seasons, all of which are woven by Jiangnan Sanzhi, which is prepared in advance several years before the emperor’s wedding ceremony. The pattern of the fabric has always been drawn up by the Ministry of Rites, and the artist draws a sample draft. After the emperor approves, the Ministry of Internal Affairs sends it to Sanzhizao for purchase. The wedding patterns woven for the royal family are all traditional patterns that are related to marriage customs in the palace and contain auspicious meanings, such as Fulu Bandai, Dragon and Phoenix Bringing Good Fortune, etc. The seawater river cliff pattern of this gown is embroidered with a magpie and a plum pattern on the upper part, and decorated with red coral and rice beads to form the character “囍”. The purpose is very clear.

Qing Guangxu, bright yellow silk embroidered with eight groups of magpies, plums, coral beads and 囍 characters, with Shui Jifu gowns. This gown is embroidered with bright yellow silk, with eight embroidered plum blossoms in full bloom, four magpies jumping on the branches, and red coral rice beads in the middle to form the character “囍”, with distinct layers and echoing up and down. Bright yellow is the imperial color exclusively used by the royal family. The magpie and plum blossoms imply happy brows, and the word “囍” pressed on the top implies happiness on top of happiness, highlighting the joy and peace of the emperor’s wedding. Plum blossoms have strong cold resistance, and they can brave the severe cold and bloom alone in the middle of winter when all the flowers are withered. Emperor Guangxu’s wedding coincided with the midwinter when plum blossoms were in full bloom, and such patterns added a festive atmosphere to the wedding..

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..

#北京。 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #June2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies #星球研究所 # Planet Research Institute #MingDynastyTombs Travelling into #MingDynasty walking down living history mystery solving…

The Ming Tombs are located at the foot of Tianshou Mountain in Changping District , Beijing China, People’s Republic of China , about 50 kilometers away from Tiananmen. The Ming Tombs are located in a small basin surrounded by mountains on three sides in the east, west and north. The area around the tomb is surrounded by mountains, the central part is a plain, and there is a meandering river in front of the tomb. From the beginning of Changling in May of the seventh year of Yongle (1409) to the burial of Chongzhen, the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty, in Siling.

The Ming Tombs have a total of 13 imperial tombs, including the Changling Mausoleum of Chengzu Zhu Di, Xianling Mausoleum of Renzong Zhu Gaochi, Jingling Mausoleum of Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji, Yuling Mausoleum of Yingzong Zhu Qizhen, Xianzong Zhu Jianshenmao Mausoleum, Xiaozong Zhu Youtang’s Tai Mausoleum. The Kangling Mausoleum of Wuzong Zhu Houzhao, the Yongling Mausoleum of Sejong Zhu Houcong, the Zhao Mausoleum of Mu Zong Zhu Zaihou, and the Ding Mausoleum of Shenzong Zhu Yijun. The Qingling Mausoleum of Guangzong Zhu Changluo, and the Deling Mausoleum of Xizong Zhu Youxiao. The Siling Mausoleum of Chongzhen Emperor Zhu Youjian. In addition, there are 8 accompanying tombs, including 7 concubine (prince) tombs and 1 eunuch tomb. Its architectural form embodies the feudal rules and regulations of the Ming Dynasty. Both the emperor’s mausoleum and the rear mausoleum are covered with yellow glazed tiles. 

The Ming Tombs area covers an area of ​​40 square kilometers. It is famous for its magnificent scale, complete cemetery system, solemn and harmonious layout, beautiful and quiet scenery, and elegant and simple style.

In 1957, it was listed as the first batch of key ancient buildings and cultural relic’s protection units in Beijing. In 1961, it was listed as a national key cultural relic protection unit by the State Council of the People’s Republic of China. In 1982, the Ming Tombs and Badaling were listed as one of the national key scenic spots protection areas as a complete scenic spot. On July 3, 2003, the Ming Tombs, as an expansion project of the royal tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, were approved by the 27th United Nations World Heritage Conference and included in the “World Heritage List

The Ming tombs are a collection of mausoleums built by the emperors of the Ming dynasty of China. The first Ming emperor’s tomb is located near his capital Nanjing. However, the majority of the Ming tombs are located in a cluster near Beijing and collectively known as the Thirteen Tombs of the Ming dynasty. 

The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last imperial dynasty of China ruled by the Han people, the majority ethnic group in China…

Enjoy the cool air! I should be the first science popularization master who entered the Ming Tombs at night.

This is the largest and most complete royal cemetery in China, and the resting place of 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty. When the hustle and bustle of the day fades away, this cemetery has more vicissitudes of history. The purpose of this trip is to find the answer to a question.



Regardless of whether it is the imperial tombs of the Han and Tang Dynasties, the imperial tombs of the Song Dynasty, or the imperial tombs of the Qing Dynasty, they were either severely damaged or completely looted. But why is it that only the Ming Tombs are relatively intact above and below ground? 明圣圣陵Why can survive to this day ?

Walk! Go down to the imperial mausoleum to solve the mystery that has been covered in dust for many years…

 The Ming Tombs are located in Changping District, 50km northwest of Beijing, and are the general name of the tombs of 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty. The mausoleum area covers an area of ​​80km2, and it is the relatively complete mausoleum building and the tomb group with the most buried emperors in the world today.
  The construction of the Ming Tombs began in the seventh year of Ming Yongle (1409) and ended in the early Qing Dynasty, which lasted more than 200 years. According to the order of the construction time of the mausoleum, they are: Changling (Tomb of Emperor Yongle), Xianling (Tomb of Emperor Hongxi), Jingling (Tomb of Emperor Xuande), Yuling (Tomb of Emperor Zhengtong (that is, Emperor Tianshun)), Maoling (Tomb of Emperor Tianshun) Chenghua Emperor’s Tomb), Tailing (Hongzhi Emperor’s Tomb), Kangling (Zhengde Emperor’s Tomb), Yongling (Jiajing Emperor’s Tomb), Zhaoling (Longqing Emperor’s Tomb), Dingling (Wanli Emperor’s Tomb), Qingling (Taichang Emperor’s Tomb) Emperor’s Mausoleum), Deling (Tianqi Emperor’s Mausoleum), Siling (Chongzhen Emperor’s Mausoleum). In addition to the 13 emperors buried in the mausoleum area, there are also 23 empresses, 1 imperial concubine and dozens of palace officials who were buried. In addition, there are 7 concubine graves in the mausoleum area (East Well, West Well, Tomb of Concubine Wangui, Mourning Tomb, Tomb of Four Concubines and Two Princes, Tomb of Concubine Xian, Tomb of Concubine Zheng and Tombs of Concubines Erli, Liu, and Zhou) ) and a eunuch’s burial tomb (Wang Chengen’s tomb), as well as various buildings such as palaces and gardens serving the emperor’s mausoleum. City walls were built at 10 natural mountain passes (Dongshan Pass, Zhongshan Pass, Zhazikou, Xishan Pass, Desheng Pass, Yanzi Pass, Zhuishi Pass, Xianzhuang Pass, Huiling Pass, and Laojuntang Pass) around the mausoleum. , Barrier walls and other defensive facilities to protect the safety of the mausoleum area.


  The construction of the imperial mausoleum of the Ming Dynasty was divided into several steps: the selection of the mausoleum site, the formulation of regulations, and the preparation of materials for construction. The selection of the mausoleum site is the primary link in the construction of the mausoleum. Generally, firstly, the first and second-rank officials of the DPRK will lead the Fengshui surveyors to follow the theory of Fengshui, “the shape of the mountain from the outside, and the land veins from the inside”. The emperor, if necessary, draws a picture, pastes a description, and finally decides by the emperor.


  After Cheng Zu Zhu Di proclaimed himself emperor, he planned to move the capital from Nanjing to Beijing. In the sixth year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty (1408), Zhu Di ordered Zhao Yan, Minister of Rites, to lead Jiangxi warlock Liao Junqing and others to visit the mausoleum near Beijing. After more than a year, the auspicious soil for thousands of years was finally found in the Huangtu Mountain in Changping. Zhu Di then sealed Huangtu Mountain as Tianshou Mountain, and decreed to encircle the area with a radius of 80 li as the forbidden area of ​​the mausoleum.


  The layout of the tombs of the Ming Tombs is not in accordance with the “Zhou Li” method of left and right, but with the respected ones in the main veins and the humble ones in the secondary veins (remaining veins). Changling is the first tomb of the Ming Tombs. It is located in the middle of the main peak of Tianshou Mountain, and other tombs are arranged around it. Among the Ming Tombs, Changling is the largest, followed by Yongling and Dingling, and Siling is the smallest. Mausoleum construction methods can be divided into three types: one is the mausoleum built by the emperor during his lifetime, which is large in scale and richly decorated (such as Changling Tomb, Yongling Mausoleum, and Ding Tomb); The posthumous edict of “building a mausoleum” may be affected by the burial period and national power, and the scale is small and relatively simple (such as Xianling and Jingling); the third is that the emperor will not have time to build the mausoleum during his lifetime, and the next dynasty will build it after the change of dynasty (such as Siling).
  The Ming Tombs are famous all over the world for their majestic scale, complete cemetery system, solemn and harmonious layout, beautiful and quiet scenery, and elegant and simple style. In 1957, it was listed as the first batch of key ancient buildings and cultural relics protection units in Beijing. In 1961, it was listed as a national key cultural relics protection unit. In 1982, the Ming Tombs and Badaling were listed as one of the national key scenic spots protection areas as a complete scenic spot. On July 3, 2003, the Ming Tombs, as an expansion project of the royal tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, were approved by the 27th United Nations World Heritage Conference and included in the “World Heritage List”.

Images and visuals are from their respectives..

#北京。 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #May2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies -“Xiangkai Vientiane–The Forbidden City and Tibetan Cultural Relics Joint Exhibition” reflecting the history of ethnic relations in the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties….

The Forbidden City Palace Museum Beijing, China, People’s Republic of China holds a large-scale exhibition reflecting the history of ethnic relations in the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, “Xiangkai Vientiane–The Forbidden City and Tibetan Cultural Relics Joint Exhibition” will be on display at the Meridian Gate on April 29th 2023 towards 30th of September 2023.

On April 28, 2023, the opening ceremony of “Auspicious Opening of Vientiane—Joint Exhibition of the Forbidden City and Tibetan Cultural Relics” was held at the Palace Museum. Wang Xudong, member of the Party Leadership Group of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and director of the Palace Museum, Zhong Tingxiong, deputy director of the Propaganda Department of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission, Zhang Xuxia, deputy director of the General Office of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Lian Xiangmin, deputy director-general of the China Tibetology Research Center, protection of historical sites in China Song Xinchao, chairman of the association and former deputy director of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, Qu Zhen, deputy secretary of the party group and director of the Tibet Autonomous Region Cultural Relics Bureau, Yang Fan, secretary of the Party Committee of the National Museum of China, Fayan, deputy director of the National Cultural Palace, Zha Xia, director of the Tibetan Culture Museum, Chinese Buddhist Master Yanjue, the president of the association, relevant departments and bureaus of the Central Propaganda Department and the Central United Front Work Department, relevant comrades in charge of cultural museums in Beijing, relevant associations, team members of the Palace Museum, and leaders of retirement homes attended the opening ceremony. Du Haijiang, Secretary of the Party Committee and Vice President of the Palace Museum, Deji Zhuoga, Deputy Secretary of the Party Group and Director of the Department of Culture of the Tibet Autonomous Region, and Yang Xun, the representative of the Xuri Charity Foundation and the vice chairman and general manager of Xuri Group Co., Ltd. Speech at the ceremony. Ren Wanping, vice president of the Palace Museum, presided over the opening ceremony of the exhibition.

“Xiangkai Vientiane-The Forbidden City and Tibetan Cultural Relics Joint Exhibition” is jointly organized by the Palace Museum and the Cultural Relics Bureau of the Tibet Autonomous Region, with special support from the Rising Sun Charity Foundation. The exhibition hall of Yanchi Building is open to the audience. Guided by General Secretary Xi Jinping’s thought that “cultural identity is the deepest level of identity, the root of national unity and the soul of national harmony”, combined with the construction of the “Four Forbidden City” system of the Palace Museum, it is a cultural and The display of the results of the Ministry of Tourism’s Tibet-aid project “Research on the Chinese Nation Community Based on the Forbidden City and Tibetan Cultural Relics” is also a large-scale comprehensive exhibition reflecting the history of ethnic relations in the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. The exhibition reflects the latest relevant scientific research achievements of the Palace Museum in the past five years, explores the cultural connotations behind the cultural relics, shows the exchanges, exchanges and integration between Tibet and the mainland and the court embodied in the cultural relics, and composes a splendid chapter of national unity and progress.

  Du Haijiang, Secretary of the Party Committee and Vice President of the Palace Museum, said in his speech that the exhibition takes forging the consciousness of the Chinese nation’s community as its starting point and foothold. The emotional bond and spiritual belonging of the nation prove the necessity and forward-lookingness of forging a sense of community of the Chinese nation. For thousands of years, people of various ethnic groups in Tibet and inland have been in frequent contact with each other, helping each other, and being brothers and sisters. The Forbidden City, where the Palace Museum is located, is a witness to the exchanges, exchanges, and integration between Tibet and the mainland of the motherland, and a historical witness to the continuous formation of the consciousness of the Chinese nation community. Based on the close historical relationship between cultural relics and the interaction between cultural relics and the design of the exhibition hall, the exhibition reproduces the historical facts of exchanges, exchanges and integration between Tibet and the mainland, and restores the great process of the Chinese nation’s community consciousness from formation to consolidation in history.

Deji Zhuoga, director of the Cultural Department of the Tibet Autonomous Region, said in his speech that this exhibition is an in-depth implementation of the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important exposition on cultural relics work by the Tibet Autonomous Region and the Palace Museum. It is an important exhibition held to firmly grasp the consciousness of the community of the Chinese nation and build a common spiritual home for the Chinese nation. The exhibition showcases the long history and splendid culture of the Forbidden City and Tibet, demonstrates the extensive exchanges and in-depth integration between Tibet and other parts of the motherland, and witnesses the diverse and colorful Chinese culture. As a large area of ​​cultural relics resources, Tibet has made all-round progress and historic achievements in promoting the protection and utilization of cultural relics in recent years. Cultural relics have played an important role in forging the consciousness of the Chinese nation community and promoting Tibet’s long-term stability and high-quality development.

Yang Xun, the representative of the Xuri Charity Foundation and the vice chairman and general manager of Xuri Group Co., Ltd., who specially supported the exhibition, said that Chinese culture is a synthesis of the cultures of all ethnic groups and a common spiritual home for people of all ethnic groups. “Prosperity in Vientiane—Joint Exhibition of Cultural Relics from the Forbidden City and Tibet” tells the moving story of exchanges, exchanges, and integration between Tibet and various ethnic groups in the mainland through cultural relics research. Glorious Sun Group has strengthened its cultural self-confidence for many years and helped the inheritance and protection of Chinese culture. This support for the exhibition is what Glorious Sun Group should and must do for the inheritance and protection of Chinese culture.

“Auspicious Blossoms – The Forbidden City and Tibetan Cultural Relics Joint Exhibition” is divided into three parts: “Flowers Blooming All Over the Road – Communication between Tibet and the Mainland”, “Flowers and Leafs – Identity and Destination” and “Spring Blossoms and Autumn Fruits – Fruitful Cultural Achievements”. The theme unit uses “flowers” to symbolize the process of integration between Tibet and various ethnic groups in the interior. The exhibition exhibited 108 pieces (sets) of cultural relics, including 13 pieces (sets) of cultural relics from various units under the Tibet Autonomous Region Cultural Relics Bureau and the Sakya Monastery Management Committee, and 95 pieces (sets) of cultural relics from the Palace Museum. In addition to the well-known calligraphy and painting exhibits such as Yan Liben of the Tang Dynasty “Bucharian Picture” and Zhao Mengfu’s “Emperor’s Danba Stele Scroll” of the Yuan Dynasty, there are also a large number of cultural relics that meet the audience for the first time, such as the “Manchu Collection” collected by the Palace Museum. The Sutra, the statue of Emperor Yongle in the Potala Palace, and the thangkas of Kublai Khan first seen in the Sakya Temple, etc., fully demonstrate the diversity of styles and artistic charm of Tibetan-themed cultural relics.

According to the protection requirements of cultural relics and reference practices, the calligraphy and painting works of the Song and Yuan Dynasties and before in the exhibition will be replaced with replicas after one month of exhibition.

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..