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Forbidden City
--Palace Museum of China

Introduction | Virtual tour | Architecture | Construction | Present condition | Treasure
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Brief introduction of Forbidden City
Forbidden City, also called Palace Museum or Gugong in Chinese, is located at the center of Beijing. It was the imperial palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties. It is to the north of Tian'anmen Square. Rectangular in shape, Forbidden City is the world's largest palace complex. Forbidden City covers 74 hectares. Opposite the Tian'anmen Gate in the south, to the north is the Gate of Devine Prowess (Shenwumen), which faces Jingshan Park. The Forbidden City is divided into two parts: The outer court was where the emperor exercised his supreme power over the nation. The northern section, or the inner court was where he lived with his royal family.

Announcing the history of Forbidden City
Until 1924 when the last emperor of China was driven from the Inner Court, fourteen emperors of the Ming dynasty and ten emperors of the Qing dynasty had reigned here. Having been the imperial palace for some five centuries, it houses numerous rare treasures and curiosities. Listed by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1987, the Palace Museum is now one of the most popular tourist attractions worldwide.

Why Forbidden City got the name ?
Forbidden City also called Purple Forbidden City. In the feudal society, emperors had supreme power, so this residence was certainly a forbidden place. Purple was the symbolic color of the North Star, which was believed to be the center of the cosmos. So it got the name of Forbidden City or Purple Forbidden City.

Discover the m anin sceneries of Forbidden City
Forbidden City is the world's largest palace complex. There are many interesting places. Some of them is listed from sout to north as followed:

• Meridian Gate (Wumen )
• Inner Golden Water River (Neijinshuihe)
• Gate of Supreme Harmony ( Taihemen )
• Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihedian)
• Hall of complete Harmony (Zhonghedian)
• Hall of Preserving Harmony (Baohedian)
• Gate of Heavenly Purity (Qianqingmen)
• Palace of Heavenly purity (Qianqinggong)
• Palace of Earthly Tranquility (Kunninggong)
• Palace of Union and Peace (Jiaotaidian)
• Hall of Metal Cultivation (Yangxindian)
• Marble Ramp Carved with Cloud and Dragon Design
• Six Eastern and Western Palace
• Nine-dragon Screen
• Imperial Garden
• Zhen Fei well
• Gate of Divine prowess (Shenwumen)