forbidden-city Photos

THE FORBIDDEN CITY is a UNESCO world heritage site.

The Imperial Palace, known under the name of the Forbidden City, is the world’s largest architectural complex made of wood.

A masterpiece of Chinese art and architecture, the palace was the residence of Ming and Qing dynaties emperors for 500 years, from 1416 to the 1911 revolution. 24 Chinese emperors lived here, completely isolated from the outside world, any kind of access being forbidden. With the exception of representatives of the greatest families, the only men who had access into the Palace were eunuchs – who numbered a few thousand at the empire’s maximum development stage. The complex took only 14 years to build, between 1406 and 1420. It is the size of a small town, 720,000 square metres in surface. It includes palaces, pavillions, halls, alleys, gardens, courtyards. Legend counts 999 rooms. The complex is surrounded by 7.8 m high walls and a moat 52 m wide. The tiles on the roof used to be gold-plated and the construction of any building taller than the Palace was strictly forbidden.

The Forbidden City is a spectacular place, with its history, customs, symbols and tabus, with its special architecture and attention given to each and every detail.