Travel to China, in addition to the Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, the next destination that visitors cannot ignore is the Forbidden City. This palace is not only the most powerful emblem of the feudal dynasty of China but also one of the largest historical sites in China. Experience the ups and downs of Chinese history; this relic area has a lot of anecdotes, interesting stories that many people do not know yet. Top 5 fascinating Forbidden City facts in China below will help you explore and have a deeper insight into the hidden beauty of the cultural values that exist here.
The Forbidden City is always at the top of the list of the most popular tourist destinations in China. The citadel is located right in the southern area of Tiananmen Square, the center of Beijing. In addition to the name of Forbidden City, it also has many other names such as Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties in Beijing and Shenyang. In 1987, the Forbidden City was recognized by UNESCO as World Cultural Heritage. That is the center of China’s supremacy of power throughout the five centuries, an invaluable historical evidence of this country.
Coming to The Forbidden City in China, visitors will be overwhelmed by an immense architectural complex, designed with a harmonious combination of open garden space and thousands of rooms, and a lot of ancient objects also kept up to now. Visitors, especially those who love culture, history will certainly be fascinated by the rich history and design of this vast. Top 5 fascinating Forbidden City facts in China will help you satisfy some of the mystery, interesting things of this place.
Number 9 – a lucky number
The first interesting fact in Top 5 fascinating Forbidden City facts in China that few visitors know is everything here related to the lucky number – number 9. According to the Chinese tradition, number 9 was a symbol of luck, especially for royal palaces. Number 9 is the odd number and also the largest number in positive numbers. Following to the Chinese concept, it has the meanings of an anode, which is, the flourishing, and the best. So there are nine internal doors (harem). These gates are magnificently decorated. There are also 9,999 rooms in the Forbidden City are contained within 980 magnificent wooden buildings. Moreover, when passing through the main road into the king’s palace, visitors will see a large stone with slices 9, on nine dragons carved to symbolize Nine Stations coincide.
The word «Zi» in the Forbidden City means “purple”
Chinese people especially pay homage to Heaven and Earth and often see the emperors as gods. These Kings are rulers who have been sent by the emperor to the people to govern the river. Forbidden City is the residence of the Emperor should be built by heavenly heaven, reminding the spiritual relationship between God and people. The word “Zi” in the Forbidden City (the Purple Forbidden City) means “purple,” drawing on the myth of the Purple Forbidden Enclosure is the abode of God in heaven (Chinese: 紫微 垣; pinyin: Zǐweiyuan ). Because Purple Forbidden Enclosure is the dwelling place of Heaven, anyone who wants to come here must be allowed. Ordinary people absolutely cannot enter, if deliberately will be executed. That is the next exciting Forbidden City facts in China since many tourists are unaware of the origin of the name of this citadel.
One of the architects who built the Forbidden City was Vietnamese
Another impressive Forbidden City facts in China one cannot fail to mention is the Vietnamese governor general, a talented architect. To build up the great and magnificent architectural complex that every Chinese citizen is proud of the most incredible work in the world is thanks to the vital contributions from a Vietnamese eunuch, Nguyen An. After the Ming defeated the Ho, invaded Dai Viet, many young men were sent to China as eunuchs. Among the eunuchs who served at the king’s palace, Nguyen An (1381 – 1453) was taken as eunuchs to serve the imperial palace of the Ming dynasty. At that time, Minh An found Nguyen An (also known as A Liu) good at Math, have the talent of building architecture.
When Minh Thanh To – Chu De decided to start construction of a great work comparable to Heaven and Earth, the eunuch Nguyen An was assigned to the key task is “general manager” for the whole. Forbidden works. According to many records, Nguyen An is the one who drew the design for this beautiful project. Therefore, his name is still handed down until today together with the existence majesty of the Forbidden City which changes throughout time and history.
The most splendid, grandiose architecture in China
The Forbidden City was built in the late 15th century and completed in the early 16th century, home to 24 emperors, including 14 emperors of the Ming dynasty and ten emperors of the Qing dynasty.
This citadel is built by huge jelly blocks weighing more than 300 tons, located 70 km far from the site. By the end of the 19th century, the Forbidden City was home to nearly 9,000 people, including emperors, queens, emperors, royalty, women, eunuchs, guards, etc.
Most of the roofs of the palaces are lacquered with yellow tiles, representing the Chinese court. Yellow in the theory of the Five Elements is the earth, the root of all things, so the old yellow is dominated by the dominant color is the most precious. Also, the Forbidden City holds more than 1,000,000 antiques and treasures from feudal dynasties. Each detail of the big and small of the Forbidden City is sparkling and luxurious by rare materials such as precious stones, celadon tiles, precious wood, etc.
Certainly, when looking at the items on display in the Forbidden City, visitors can imagine the lavish splendor of the Emperor that any books yet can not portray before. Moreover, you may not see these impressive numbers in any palace in the world today.
The ghosts exist in Forbidden City
One of the most disturbing Forbidden City facts in China is the story of the ghosts here. There are probably so many visitors who have heard the word “territorial offer” through Chinese dramas and books. Everyone, from Queen to the concubines, while annoying Emperor imprisoned often suffer painful to die in “territorial offer.” Also, the Forbidden City is a place extremely harsh, the struggle for power, favors and bloody intrigue from the concubine, eunuchs, and maidens always happen. Therefore, no wonder this place is always handed unremitting evil stories, often appear in the Palace at sunset. There are many records of witnessing the ghosts of the Forbidden City at dusk, such as many visitors observe the image of the eunuchs and women go through them, the sounds like the ghost of the Emperor on the full moon.
Whenever night falls on this ancient capital, bizarre things continue to appear but no answer. That has caused fear, as well as curiosity for visitors who have never been here.
With the high stature of a world-class structure, each year the Forbidden City welcomes millions of tourists from locals to foreigners. Chinese people are extremely proud of each other when talking about Forbidden City with the perfect synthesis of traditional construction techniques in ancient Chinese palace architecture. Between the thriving city of China in general and Beijing in particular, a citadel is a place where people can look, meditate, and find primitive culture. There are always hide in the many Forbidden City facts that we have not discovered yet.
To understand more about Chinese culture and history, you should not miss this place when visiting this land. Travel to the Forbidden City promises to bring many interesting things as well as new experiences for your holiday.
