Search
  • Home
  • Media center
    • News
    • Biz updates
    • Life
    • Specials
    • Videos
    • Photos
  • Government
    • News release
    • Personnel changes
    • Annual reports
    • Officials
    • Bureaus
  • Living
    • Life
    • Dining
    • Shopping
    • Entertainment
    • Arts
      • Craftworks
      • Theater performances
      • Museums
      • Galleries
      • Art zones
    • Transportation
    • Services
    • FAQ
  • Doing business
    • Biz updates
    • Introduction
    • Planning
    • Procedures
    • Policies
    • Industries
    • Industrial parks
    • Enterprises
  • Visiting
    • Travel log
    • Attractions
      • Historical
      • Parks
      • Religious
      • Museums
      • Nature
      • Landmarks
    • Itineraries
    • Maps
    • Transportation
    • Hotels
    • Dining
  • Study
    • Student stories
    • Overview
    • Universities
    • Scholarships
    • Services
    • Learning Chinese
    • Testing
  • About
    • Profiles
    • Maps
    • Districts
    • Special areas
    • Festivals and events
    • History
  • Events
    • Dates
    • Categories
  • Forum
 
Home / Forbidden City

Forbidden City's Hall of Rectitude restored to former glory

Updated: 2012-11-28 /By Zhang Zixuan (chinadaily.com.cn)
  • printer
  • mail

The Palace Museum and the Hong Kong-based China Heritage Fund, co-hosted a ceremony on Nov 27 to announce the completion of the restoration of the Hall of Rectitude complex.

Situated in the northwest part of the Forbidden City, south of the Garden of the Palace of Established Happiness, the Hall of Rectitude complex is composed of 10 Tibetan Buddhist Buildings, and is the only complex consisting exclusively of Buddhist architecture. It once served as a place to conduct rituals of Tibetan Buddhist worship, and was first open in 1697.

In 1923 a fire that started in the Garden of the Palace of Established Happiness spread to the complex and destroyed all but the Pavilion of the Rain of Flowers, a section of the Hall of Precious Prosperity and two other smaller structures.

In 2006 after the Palace Museum and China Heritage Fund successfully rebuilt the Garden of the Palace of Established Happiness, the two continued to cooperate to starting rebuilding the Hall of Rectitude complex based on historic documents, file photos and paintings.

The restored complex will be used as the Palace Museum's Tibetan Buddhist Cultural Heritage Research Center as well as the exhibiting space for Tibetan Buddhist statues, thangkas and musical instruments. An ongoing exhibition featuring more than 100 Tibetan cultural relics will be located within the complex.

"The restoration brought an exquisite imperial pleasure ground back to life. A blemish from the devastation of the previous century was smoothed out, allowing the Palace Museum a great stride forward in making the Forbidden City whole again," said Shan Jixiang, director of the Palace Museum.

"The destruction of a nation's cultural heritage reflects the country's decline and turmoil, yet its restoration is a sure sign of the country's rise and prosperity," said Ronnie C. Chan, founding chairman of China Heritage Fund.

News:
  • Capital-bound plane circles Inner Mongolia
  • Heat won't come on ahead of schedule
  • Property company fined 300,000 yuan
  • Thousands crowd Fragrant Hills park
  • Palace souvenirs selling hot
  • Flag of Peace painting exhibition held in Beijing
  • Beijing becomes new 'valley'
  • Hike in fare not foul but could be fairer
  • Representative found to be unrepresentative
  • Tourists take wrong turn in the smog
Specials:
Two exhibitions marking the 50th anniversary of the Sino-French relationship kicked off at the Association des Amis de Nouvelles d'Europe in the French capital, Paris, on Sept 8.
A French Doctor in Beijing read more
Videos:
The 90s: The true me read more

Turn the page and discover Beijing in all its eclectic delights.

Explore the charm of the city in our promo videos

    • Contact
    • Site Map
    • Disclaimer
Copyright @ 2011 China Daily All Rights Reserved Sponsored by Beijing Municipal Government Powered by China Daily              京ICP备10023870号-9