Forbidden City - Hall of Preserved Harmony, Beijing

4 more images

Hall of Preserving Harmony is located north of Hall of Central Harmony. This was the hall to held many important ceremonies and used an examination hall during Emperor Qianlong's reign. It was a great way to see the Three Grand Hall together on a three-tiered white-marble base during my visit.

The signboard was written as:

" First constructed in 1420 during the Ming Dynasty, this hall was destroyed by fire and reconstructed several times. It still retains its original beams and columns. In the early Ming Dynasty, it was named Jin Sheng Dian (Hall of Scrupulous Behavior). During the Qing Dynasty in 1562 it was renamed Jian Ji Dian (Hall of the People's Sovereign) and then Bao He Dian in 1645. The hall is nine bays wide, and four bays deep, with a gable roof and carved overhanging eaves. It has an area of 1,240 square meters. The construction of the hall adopted a special "pillar-reduction"method. By omitting six pillars from under the front eaves, the hall is given a spacious feeling. Above the throne, at the center of the hall, hangs a board with an inscription written by Emperor Qianlong. The inscription reads " Huang Jian You Ji" (the Highest Norms for Emperor to Found a Regime)
During the Ming Dynasty, the emperor changed cloths in this hall before an important ceremony. In the Qing Dynasty, the emperor held banquets here for his princes, dukes, and ministers of ethnic minorities on the lunar New Year's Eve and the Lantern Festival. In the early Qing Dynasty, before the renovation of the three rear halls were completed, Emperor Shunzhi and Emperor Kangxi lived here and it was named Wei Yu Gong (Palace of Proper Places and Cultivation of things) and Qing Ning Gong (Palace of Peace and Tranquility), respectively, during their reigns. The wedding ceremony of Emperor Shunzhi was held here. In 1789, the emperor supervised the final stage of examinations to select officials from among scholars from all over the country. The words "Bao He" are from the Book of Changes, and mean "maintaining harmony between all things on earth to have a long period of peace and stability. "

Don't forget the largest stone carvings on the north side of the hall! The signboard was written as:
" It is the largest stone carving in the palace, 16.75 meters long, 3.07 meters wide, and 1.7 meters thick, and weight more than 200 tons, hence the name "Large Stone Carving". It was carved out of a huge natural stone in the early Ming Dynasty, when the three main halls were constructed. In 1761 (the 26th years of Qianlong reign period of the Qing Dynasty), the old patterns were carved. With beautiful interlocking lotus patterns all around, the huge stone carving has curling waves at the bottom and nine dragons amidst clouds in the middle, as the dragon is an imperial signal. The stone was quarried from Dashiwo in Fangshan in the western suburban of Beijing. It was transported to the Palace Museum by sprinkling water on the way in winter to make an iced road. Then it was pulled all the way to the Palace Museum along the iced road."

In Chinese: 保和殿 (Bao He Dian)