The Forbidden City - 北京故宮

The Forbidden City pictures

Description: The Forbidden City

The Forbidden City in Beijing, was the home of the Chinese Emperors for more than six centuries, until 1911, end of the empire.The entrance is by Tian An Men. The tourist twist his neck to admire the imposing building, in height as much as in width, before entering a place that for centuries, was forbidden to ordinary mortals.A closed city from which emperors raely came out. The Palace, which have the size of a city, has more than 800 buildings, most of them built in the 18th century.Fired, looted and destroyed on numerous occasions, the Forbidden City was finally declared World Heritage in 1987, allowing us today to visit one of the most beautiful sites in Beijing.When we are visiting the Forbidden City, we can see what life was at the emperors’ court : comfort, opulence, concubines playing music, the freshness of the imperial garden during the summer… But also a life full of intrigue, jealousy and games of power…In addition to visit buildings, living rooms,and rooms more official where there is always a richly gilded throne, you can also visit “museums” rooms with exhibits such as clocks, jewels, porcelains…You can also admire many pairs of bronze guardian lions, a male who holds under his paw, a globe representing the world, and a female who delicately puts a paw on a lion cub. Power and fertility…These lions, are placed to protect the buildings and date from the Ming Dynasty.The wall of the dragoons, the guardians of the roofs, the large copper basins, the bronzes in the shape of mythical animals… so many things to see that make the site unique in its kind.