Former Imperial Palace 故宫中英文简介

北京故宫博物院 中英文导游词

Hello, everyone,

We are now going to pay a visit to a place of special interest. This scenic spot is located at the center of Beijing and is characterized by thousands of palatial architectures and purple walls as well as yellow glazed tile roofs- it is simply a sea of palaces. This is the world – famous wonder – the Palace Museum.

The Palace Museum has served as the royal residence during the Ming and Qing dynasties. It was here that a total of 24 monarchs ascended the throne and wielded power for some 500 years. The Palace Museum, as the most beautiful spot of interest throughout Beijing, is unique for its location: to the northwest is Beihai(North Sea) Park, famous for its white pagoda and rippling lake; to the west is the Zhongnahai (central and south sea); to the east lies the the Wangfujing Shopping Street; and to the north id Jinshan Park. Standing in the Wanchun (Everlasting Spring) Pavilion at the top of Jingshan(Charcoal Hill) Park, you overlook the skyline of the palace Museum. At the southern end of the palace is Tian` anmen (Gate of Heavenly Peace) and the famous square named after it . This is the symbol of the People` s Republic of China.

A world-famous historical site, the Palace Museum is on the World Heritage List of UNESCO and is an embodiment of oriental civilization.

The Palace Museum is rectangular in shape, 960 meters long from north to south and 750 meters wide from east to west, covering a space of 720,000 square meters of which 150,000 is building area . It has 9000-strong rooms in it . According to legend there are 9999.5 room-units in all .The whole compound is enclosed by a 10-meter-hign wall and is accessed through four entrances, namely, the meridian Gate in the south ,the Gate of Military Prowess in the north, Donghua(Eastern Flowery ) Gate in the north, Donghua ( Eastern Flowery) Gate in the east and Xihua(Western Flowery ) Gate in the west. On each corner there is a turret consisted of 9 roof beams, 18 pillars and 72 ridge . Encircling the compound there is a 3,800-meter-long and 52 meter-wide moat, making the Palace Museum a self-defensive city-within-a city.

The Palace Museum was made a center of rule during the Ming Dynasty by Zhun Di, The fourth son of the founding emperor Zhuyuanzhang. The whole complex straddles on an 8-kilometers-long central axis that stretches from Yongding (Forever Stable) Gate in the south to Gulou (Drum Tower) in the north. Prominence was given to the royal power by putting the “three main front halls” and “three back halls ”on the axis while arrange other subsidiary structure around them .The construction of the Palace Museum involved manpower and resources across China. For example, the bricks laid in the halls ,known as “gold brick, ” underwent complex, two –dozen processes. As the final touch ,the fired bricks were dipped in Chinese wood oil. Involving complicated processes and high cost, these brick are called “golden bricks.” The Palace Museum serves as a living embodiment of good tradition and styles unique to China` s ancient architecture. It reflects to the full the ingenuity and creativity of the Chinese working people. A carefully preserved and complete group of royal residences, the Palace Museum is a prominent historical and tourist site.
What we are now approaching is the main entrance to the Palace Museum-the Meridian Gate, which is characterized by red walls, yellow glazed –tile roofs and upturned eaves. On top of this walls, yellow glazed-tile roofs and upturned eaves. On top of this magnificent building ,there stand five lofty halls with a main hall in the center. The main hall is roofed by multiple eaves and covers a space of 9 room-units. It is flanked by two wings on each side .The wings are square in shape ,complete with multiple and four edged eaves and pinnacles. All of these structures are connected by a colonnade. Because these halls resemble a soaring bird, it was also know as wufenglou (Five-phoenix Tower) . Inside the main hall there is a throne. Drums and bells were stored in the wings. Whenever the emperor presided over grand ceremonies or observed rites in the Hall of Upreme Harmony, drums, bells and gongs would be struck to mark the occasion.

As the legend goes, the Meridian Gate used to be a place where condemned ranking officials would be executed. This not true. However, flogging was carried out here by the Ming emperors ,If a courtier falls afoul of the emperor, he would be stripped of his court dress and flogging with a stick .At one point the punishment became so harsh that a total of 11 people died from fatal wound on a single occasion .On the other hand, this building was also used to observe important occasions like the traditional Chinese Lantern Festival (15th day of the first lunar month). On these occasions, Chinese lanterns would be hanged and sumptuous banquets would be given in honour of the whole court of ministers and other ranking officials.

Upon entering the Meridian Gate we began our tour of the Palace Museum. The river foowing in front of us is known as Jin Shui He (Golden Water River) and the five marbles bridges spanning it are known as the Inner Golden Water Bridges. The on in the middle was used exclusive by the emperor and its banisters were carved with dragon and phoenix designs. The bridges flanking the imperial one were reserved for princes and other royal members. The rest were used by palatines. Aside from decoration, the golden Water River was also dug as precaution against fire. Most of the structures within the palace Museum are made of wood. What is more ,according to ancient Chinese cosmology, the South is the abode of fire, so this brook was dug on the southern tip of the Palace. In this way, the Palace Museum reflects traditional Chinese culture.

This building is called the Gate of Supreme Harmony .In the foreground stand two bronze lions. Can anybody tell which is male and which is female? The one on the east playing with a ball is male, symbolizing power and universal unity. The other on the west with a cub cuddling underneath its claw is female? The one on the east playing with a ball is male, symbolizing power and universal unity. The other on the west with a cub cuddling underneath its claw is female, representing prosperity the endless succession. A layout of the Palace Museum is posted by the entrance . From it ,you can see that the Palace Museum has two main parts: the forecourt and the inner court. The three main halls constitute the mainstay of the forecourt, and it was here that the emperor announced decisions and observed rites. Behind the forecourt there is the inner court, consisting of major halls and the Imperial Garden .It was where the emperor attended state affairs, lived and enjoyed his luxurious life. The exhibition system of the Palace Museum involves historical court relics and articles of ancient art and culture. The Palace Museum houses nearly one million articles of rare treasure, or one sixth of the total number in all of China `s museums. There are the three main halls of the Palace museum, built on a triple marble terrace . Since most of China `s architecture is made of wood, the buildings cannot be too tall. To gain the height of the architecture, ingenious ancient artisans built the hall on a gigantic stone terrace .It is also to this end that not a single plant was grown in the square. On stairways of triple marble terrace there are 18 bronze tripods .The verandah is flanked by bronze tortoises and cranes, which served as symbols of longevity .On the east is a sundial, an ancient timepiece. On the west there is a grain measure suggesting that the emperor was just and equitable.

In the front and on each flank ,there is a pair of gilt bronze vats (caldrons ) molded during the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty .Each of these weights 2 tons and is filled with water as a precaution in the event of a fire .The structure in the very middle is the Hall of Supreme Harmony ,also known as the throne hall. It is 64 meters in width and is 38 meters from entrance to rear. With terrace exclusive ,the hall is 26.92 meters in height and is 35.03 meters in all .Covering and areaof 2,377 square meters, the Hall of Supreme Harmony is China` s largest exiting wooden structure. The hall is supported by 6 thick ,round pillars carved in a design of coiling dragons. As the holiest place in the hall, the ceiling and colored patterns were made of the finest material available at that time. The throne was placed on a terrace and is flanked by statues of elephants, Luduan (a unicorn which could travel 18,000 kilometers a day and understand all languages), cranes and incense barrels .Over the throne there is the caisson ,or covered ceiling ,which consists of a coiling dragon playing with a ball in its mouth .This ball is known as Xuanyuan Mirror ,and was supposedly made by a Chinese emperor of remote times to serve as a reminder that thee rulers to follow were his hereditary heirs. The throne is made of nanmu and painted in gold .Magnificently built and luxuriously decorated ,this hall did not serve as a place in which the emperor attended to daily affairs. He used his hall for major events such as his birthday, conferral of title of empress or dispatch of generals to war.

Behind the Hall of Supreme Harmony ,there sits the Hall of Complete Harmony. This structure is square in shape .Each side is 24.15 meters. This was the place where the emperor relaxed and greeted his courtiers before proceeding to the hall of supreme Harmony to observe rites. This was also the place where the emperor prepared prayers or examined seeds and sowers before he attended ancestral sacrifices or participated in snowing ceremonies. A grand ceremony was also held here once every 10 years for the emperor to genealogize the royal blood. There are two sedan chairs on display in the hall. Behind the Hall of Complete Harmony ,you will see the Hall of Preserving Harmony, which was used as a place where imperial examinations were held. The imperial examination was the hignest level of competing for meritorious appointment under the feudal system dating back to the Sui Dynasty. China` s last imperial examination was held in 1904 during the reign of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty. To the rear of hall there is a marble ramp carved with cloud and dragon designs, the largest of its kind in the whole country . It is 16.57 meters in length, 3.07 meters in width, 1.7 meters thick and weighs 250 tons. It was quarried in Fangshan County in suburban Beijing. To bring this giant piece of stone to Beijing people poured water onto the road and applied rolling blocks during the process.
We are now standing before the square of the Hall of Heaven Purity. It served as a divide separating the forecourt from the inner court .This building is known as the Gate of Heavenly Purity. Emperor Qianlong held court here. Proceeding further north ,you can find three main rear halls ,i.e. the hall of heavenly purity. the Hall of union and peace and palace of earthly tranquility. The hall of heavenly purity if flanked on either side by two gates named after the sun and moon .Inside the enclosure there are 12 palaces and halls symbolizing constellations. All of the other buildings are centered around the Palace of Heavenly Purity , which was meant to suggest that the monarch` s power was endowed by Heaven. The empress and concubines lived in the inner court.

The hall of heavenly purity was where the emperor lived and attended to daily affairs. Later the emperor moved to live in the Palace of Mental cultivation. Looking up you can see a plaque bearing the Chinese inscription “be open and above-board,” a manifesto to court struggle .Behind the plaque a strongbox was stored containing a will bearing the name of the would –be royal successor. This approach of secretly selecting the next emperor was adopted by Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty. Two copies of the will were prepared .One was stashed by the emperor in person ,the other was placed inside the strong box behind the plaque. After the death of the emperor, the two copies would be compared and successor would be announced. It was in this way that Emperor Qianglong and others have ascended the throne.

Behind the Hall of heavenly purity you will see the hall of union and peace , which is indentical to the hall of complete harmony. It was there that the emperor received congratulations and tributes from imperial officials on major calender occasions , A total of 25 imperial seals are stored there. In the hall, you will see a plaque with the handwritten inscription of “we wei,” exhorting Taoist doctrines.

Further northward is the Palace of Earthly Tranquillity, which once served as the living room of the empresses` . The hall was later converted into a sacrificial place .Through the windowpanes on the eastern wall you can see the royal bed decorated with dragon and phoenix designs. This hall has also served as the bridal chamber of monarchs.

The Gate of Earthly Tranquilliity leads to the Imperial garden (known to westerners as Qianlong` s Garden ),which was used by the emperor ,the empress, and the concubines. A magnificent structure stands in the middle. It is called the Qin `s an (Imperial Peace) Hall. It is the only building in the Palace Museum that was built in Taoist style. It served as a shrine to the Taoist deity. The garden covers a space of 12,000 square meters ,and is 130 meters from east to the west and some 90 meters from north to the south. There are a dozen halls, verandahs, pavilions and waterside houses in the garden . On each of the fur corner there is a pavilion dedicated to the four seasons which is different in construction style and shape. The garden also features an imperial landscape. With rare trees and exotic rockery, the Imperial Garden served as a model for China` s imperial parks .In all ,a total of 10-strong building styles were applied.

The tall building we are now passing is the gate of military prowess, the back door of the Palace Museum. Our visit is now drawing to a conclusion but the architectures of the Palace are not . On the other side of the road is the 43-meter-hign Charcoal Hill , providing natural protection for the Forbidden City. This was also an embodiment of China` s construction style-putting a pool in the front and a hill in the rear. Now let` s climb up to Wanchun (Everlasting Springs ) Pavillion where we` ll have a great view of the Palace Museum.

（进午门之后）进了故宫，大家首先看见的就是人……为什么这么多人来到这里呢？因为明朝永乐年间，一百万劳工花了十四年的时间修筑起来的故宫是世界是最大的宫殿，非常有名。每天都有数万名游客来这里观光。

故宫的面积约是天安门广场的两倍，比凡尔赛宫殿还大，是日本平安神宫的十倍左右。故宫的历史开始于570年前，请大家把思绪拉回到570年前来游览故宫吧！

这个建筑是故宫朝南的正门，叫作午门。午是正晌午时的午，是位于正中的意思。午门的下面，有五个拱门，正中间的门只有皇帝才能出入，即使地位很高的大臣，也只能使用两侧的门；地方上的诸候只能使用最两端的小门。这些都是根据身份，等级来严格规定的。过去，只有皇后在结婚的时候，才能从午门进入一次，其它女性一律禁止出入午门。当然现在是谁都可以进啦。过去对皇帝的心腹都是这样严厉，一般百姓就更不用提啦。连靠近故宫都不行。所以，这个故宫又被称作紫禁城。紫是紫色的紫。过去有天帝之子，老子住的地方当然也得是紫色的宫殿才中！于是，用了个紫字。禁就是禁止入内的禁字，也就是禁止随便进放的意思。

这正中的路是皇帝专用的。这条但是故宫的中轴线，也是整个北京城的中轴线。北京的主要建筑大多都沿着这个中轴线而建，两边的建筑也多是对称的。皇帝的宫殿位于这中轴线的中间，显示着”普天之下，唯我独尊”。这条路是用大理石铺成的。请看，这大理石路比两边的路高出一块儿来。当皇帝将走这段路时，还要在上面铺上地毯之类的东西，这样就高了。所以纵然皇帝身材短小，在这上面一走，也显得高大伟岸！

皇帝是了不起的”爷们儿”，这中间的门也是了不起的”爷门儿”。每当皇帝经过这中间的门时，都要敲响大钟、大鼓伴奏才行。皇帝就这样迈着步子：咚咚---咚咚咚咚---咚---咚真戳威严无比！皇帝打心眼儿里感觉到：看！还是老子伟大！下面，我们大家也假装当回皇帝，体会一下皇帝走路的感觉吧！

（在太和门前）这个建筑叫太和门，是故宫里最大的木制大门。在这个大门的前面，放有一对狮子，这是明代用青铜的。狮子强悍，吼声震天，使百兽惧怕，放在这里，代表着皇帝的威严。那里有个石头做的像邮筒似的东西，那是大臣，诸候求皇帝时，要写申请书放在里边，由皇帝的仆人转达给皇帝：”万岁，此人求见，可以吗？””好。””是，遵命。”就可以有进了。如果皇帝狱：”不行！”那求见的人就会被撵走。和它相对称的那边，还有一个石头做成的东西，它的形状像一个大印，象征着皇帝的权力。也就是说：老子的权力坚如磐石，不管世间有何变动，老子的权力永远不变！

（经过太和门之后）前面的大殿叫太和殿，是故宫内最大的建筑物，并且是过去北京城最高的建筑物。皇帝下令：任何人的房子也不能高出老子的房子。所以京城只好建了平房，北京过去曾被称为”平房之都”。

下边的广场是太和殿广场，为什么要建这么大的广场呢？如果不建这个广场或是建个小广场，那么，人们就不会感觉到太和殿的雄伟壮观。只有建这么大的广场，站在这里向对面看去：蓝天之下，黄瓦生辉。再加上下面白色的石台，给人以豪华绚烂之感。举行大典的时候，皇帝坐在太和殿正中的御座；文武百官跪伏在广场。那时还要往石台上的大鼎里放入绿叶松枝燃烧，弄得烟雾缭绕，太和殿直就像云中楼阁一样，文武百官仰望着云中楼阁呼万岁，坐在御座上的皇帝感觉是多么良好，就可想而知啦。

（在太和殿广场）尽管故宫周围有十米高的城墙和52米宽的护城河，皇帝还是担心有人挖地道钻进故宫暗杀他，吓得睡不好觉，，绞尽脑汁想了个办法，就是把广场用十五层砖横、竖交叉地铺严实了，才终于放下心来。从这件事也可以看出，当时的权力斗争是何等激烈！当然在大典时，文武百官三呼万岁，但皇帝还是怀有戒心：这里面，这家伙，那家伙，说不定哪个家伙想暗杀老子，不注意哪行！这广场的砖层大约有三、四米深。

（在太和殿的石台上）这个由石头做成的东西叫嘉量，嘉量是当时的标准度量衡，表示皇帝公平处事，谁半斤，谁八两，心里自然有数。对面还有一个石头做成的东西，叫作日晷。发音和日记一样，但不是日记，是用来看时间的石头表。皇帝的意思是：重量和时间的基准都在老子这里。

那边有鹤和龟，”千年仙鹤，万年龟”，是长寿的象征。不过，中国和日本不同，是颠倒过来说的，叫作”万年仙鹤，千年龟”。为什么说法不一样呢？大概是过去日本的留学生在中国学了词句之后，乘船归国途中，由于船的颠簸使头脑产生混乱，记颠倒了。还有许多例子，如：日本讲良妻贤母，中国讲贤妻良母；日本讲平和，中国讲和平；日本讲法政大学，而在中国叫作政法大学。文章的意思完全一样，但只是顺序不同，大概就是乘船颠簸所致。那鹤和龟不单是一种装饰物，也是一种香炉。它们的背都盖着盖儿，每当大典时，就把盖掀起来，放入檀香燃烧，那烟就从它们的嘴里缓缓溢出，就好像它们都在吞云吐雾一样。

请大家从石台上回头看广场。我们进了故宫之后还没有看见过树。为什么在这么宽阔的地方连一树都不种呢？……不是为了防止暗杀，而是为了制造气氛。如果种了树，郁郁葱葱一片绿，鸟儿在上面又唱又叫的，就会呈现出生活的气息。如果不种绎，就会产生庄严的气氛。我们来想像一下：过去大臣、诸候要见皇帝时，全都得从天安门走着进来，走在宽阔的路上看着高大的建筑，在庄严肃穆的气氛中，大臣、诸候就会越走越感到压力沉重，当走到皇帝面前时，就会自然地双腿打着哆嗦跪下来了。

中国历史上最后一个皇帝---爱新觉罗.溥仪三岁时当上皇帝的，他即位时的御座就在太和殿的正中。现在开始五分钟自由活动，五分钟后在那凉快的地方集合。