Palace of Prolonging Happiness
| Palace of Prolonging Happiness | |
|---|---|
延禧宫 | |
.jpg) The Lingzhao Pavilion in the Palace of Prolonging Happiness | |
 | |
| Former names | Palace of Longevity |
| Alternative names | Yanxi Palace |
| General information | |
| Type | Palace |
| Town or city | Forbidden City |
| Coordinates | 39°55′08″N 116°23′33″E / 39.918870°N 116.392410°E |
| Completed | 1420 |
The Palace of Prolonging Happiness (simplified Chinese: 延禧宫; traditional Chinese: 延禧宮; pinyin: yán xǐ gōng), also known as Yanxi Palace, is one of the Six Eastern Palaces in the inner court of the Forbidden City, situated behind the Hall for Ancestral Worship.[1] Described as one of the most 'exotic' looking structures in the Forbidden City, the Palace of Prolonging Happiness was built in 1420 as the "Palace of Longevity".[2][3] From the Ming to the Qing dynasty, the palace was home to many imperial consorts and concubines. The palace was later destroyed by multiple fires between 1845 and 1855.[2] Empress Dowager Longyu ordered the palace to be rebuilt in 1909 with a new three-story Western-style building included. Known as the "Crystal Palace" (水晶宮) or "Lingzhao Pavilion", the building was surrounded by a moat that was supposed to be filled with spring water from the Jade Source Mountain near Beijing. However, lack of funding and damage from a bombing raid in 1917 prevented the completion of the structure.[3] Today, only the iron cast and marbles remain. In 1931, three two-story warehouses were added to house the Palace Museum's artifacts.[1] Since 2005, the warehouses have been used for the Ceramics Laboratory, the Research Centre for Ceramics, and the Research Centre for Traditional Calligraphy and Paintings.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Palace of Prolonging Happiness". The Palace Museum. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
- ^ a b Dagmar, Shafer (2017). "Knowledge by Design - Architecture and Jade Models During the Qianlong Reign (1735-1799)". In Valleriani, Matteo (ed.). The Structures of Practical Knowledge. Springer. pp. 282–283. ISBN 978-3319456713.
- ^ a b Barmé, Geremie R. (2011). The Forbidden City. Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press. pp. 55–56. ISBN 978-0674069091.
External links[edit]
Media related to Palace of Prolonging Happiness at Wikimedia Commons
 | This China-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |