StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...

The Forbidden City - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
At the advent of the fifteenth century AD, Yung-Lo, the third Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, built the most impressive architectural works of art in the world. The Forbidden City, embedded in the heart of China’s capital Beijing, shows an exceptionally harmonious symmetry…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER92.8% of users find it useful
The Forbidden City
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "The Forbidden City"

Download file to see previous pages

A city, which is now Beijing, was a significant commercial center in the beginning of the ninth century BC. It became the administrative core of the principality of the Yan and eventually became the capital of Liao and later on the Jin. The northern tribe, the Tartars, constructed a city near this site in the tenth century.ii When the Venetian explorer Marco Polo visited the location, he illustrated it as the city of Khan, with fortified roofs highlighting the green flora of mulberry trees. Modern Beijing is roughly five centuries old, with several of its prominent edifices entirely restored.

When Yung-lo instituted Beijing as his Chinese capital in the early fifteenth century, he commissioned roughly 200,000 laborers to construct the imperial city. Hsu Tai, Feng Chiao and Yuan An, his three engineers, were provided with the direction to build a massive, affluent and mystifying palace to function as the metropolis of the Emperor to the rest of the world. The role of the Emperor was a difficult one. Auditoriums were required for receiving delegations, along with places of worship for sacramental cleansing and processional paths.

He as well demanded expansive domestic residences with backyards for himself and his loved ones in addition to administrative housing.iii The Forbidden City was entangled in ceremonial and spiritual notions. Legend tells that the core structure of the City was envisioned in a reverie by the mentor of Yung-lo, a futurist monk. He envisioned a celestial city, wherein the Lord of Heaven dwelled in a purple enclosed space, which is assumed to be a constellation shaped by 15 heavenly bodies revolving around the polestar.

iv As Chinese cosmology believes, purple was an embodiment of bliss and happiness and as well as that of the polestar. Hence, the Emperor proclaimed himself as the Son of Heaven, with the divine obligation

...Download file to see next pages Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“The Forbidden City Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words”, n.d.)
Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1551811-the-forbidden-city
(The Forbidden City Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words)
https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1551811-the-forbidden-city.
“The Forbidden City Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1551811-the-forbidden-city.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF The Forbidden City

The Great Wall of China

Despite its majestic presence and the purpose of its construction, the Great Wall of China throughout its history has proven time and again ineffective… During the Ming Dynasty as well as Qing Dynasty, the Great Wall has failed its rulers in defending The Forbidden City. The concept of building a wall that would extend over 6000 kms at the time of 5th century BC was unheard of.... During the Ming Dynasty as well as Qing Dynasty, the Great Wall has failed its rulers in defending The Forbidden City....
1 Pages (250 words) Research Paper

Imagery of the far east

In the center of China's capital Beijing, a great palace compound called The Forbidden City exists.... The Forbidden City was the residential dwelling of the emperor.... The Forbidden City.... Jin, which means "forbidden", signified the fact that none could come in or go out of the palace unless permitted by the emperor....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

Case 3: Fedex in the Chinese Express Delevery Market: Face-Off in the Forbidden City

In the year 1997, the Asian currency crisis had resulted in steep currency devaluation which had also negatively impacted on the operating profit of FedEx (Darden Business Publishing, “FedEx in the Chinese Express Delivery Market: Face-Off in The Forbidden City”).... Besides, the recent business expansions of competitors through mergers and acquisitions have made the business environment of FedEx more competitive to survive (Darden Business Publishing, “FedEx in the Chinese Express Delivery Market: Face-Off in The Forbidden City)....
2 Pages (500 words) Case Study

Chinese Architecture The Forbidden City and Spatial Hierarchies

As such, The Forbidden City x” was put up with enormous spacing with various sections as described by the purpose for which it was supposed to serve (Ching, Jarzombek, and Prakash 17).... The architectural techniques used in The Forbidden City gives a reflection of the global view of the Chinese architects.... MacFarquhar explains that the city took up to fifteen years to construct (33).... Knapp explores the composition of the city including the southern inner city and the outer city situated in the south (23)....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

Comparison of two Historical Buildings in the Greater Los Angeles

hellip; The construction of the two buildings, as analyzed in this report, is as good as The Forbidden City in various ways, one being that they are all huge classical Chinese buildings.... It can be argued that The Forbidden City is the richest of the three classical buildings.... nbsp; The Thien Hau temple is raised as well though not as high as The Forbidden City.... There are also large vertical structural beams as seen in both The Forbidden City and Thien Hau temple....
5 Pages (1250 words) Research Paper

The Forbidden City: Symbol of Imperial Power in Ancient China

The Forbidden City was not merely a place of residence for the emperor and his family; rather, it Global History of Design/ Arch 324/ Spring Phil Gruen Beini Zhou The Forbidden Symbol of Imperial Power in Ancient China In ancient China, The Forbidden City was the palace for emperors of the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty.... The Forbidden City was not merely a place of residence for the emperor and his family; rather, it was a representation of the power of the Ming Empire....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

The Last Secrets If the Forbidden City Heads to the US

This paper under the title "The Last Secrets If The Forbidden City Heads to the US " concerns itself with the current state of the famous Forbidden City, a huge enclosure, once home to the mighty Chinese emperors, which lies at the heart of modern Beijing.... nbsp;… The author provides a brief description of The Forbidden City as a whole.... nbsp;  The Last Secrets if The Forbidden City Head to the USThis article is concerned with the current state of the famous Forbidden City, a huge enclosure, once home to the mighty Chinese emperors, which lies at the heart of modern Beijing....
2 Pages (500 words) Book Report/Review

Tourism Theory and Practice in the Context of the Forbidden City

… The paper “Tourism Theory and Practice in the Context of The Forbidden City” is a meaningful example of a case study on tourism.... The Forbidden City is also known as the Palace Museum and was considered the imperial palace at the time of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.... The paper “Tourism Theory and Practice in the Context of The Forbidden City” is a meaningful example of a case study on tourism.... The Forbidden City is also known as the Palace Museum and was considered the imperial palace at the time of the Ming and Qing Dynasties....
6 Pages (1500 words) Case Study
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us