The Palace Museum
故宫博物院 · Donghuamen Subdistrict
Contents
10 sections · tap a section for its opening lines1The Palace Museum
Welcome to the Palace Museum, known to history as the Forbidden City, or Dzee-jin-chung. As we stand at the entrance of this immense rectangle, nearly a kilometer deep and three-quarters of a kilometer wide, we are entering the…
Listen in the app2The Meridian Gate — The Portal of Imperial Proclamations
We begin at the Wu-men, or Meridian Gate, the tallest and most imposing of the city’s portals. Standing the height of a twelve-story building, its massive U-shaped structure served as the main entrance to the Forbidden City. …
Listen in the app3The Hall of Supreme Harmony — The Throne of the Son of Heaven
Before us lies the Tai-heh Dian, or Hall of Supreme Harmony, the most important and recognizable building in the complex. It sits atop a three-tiered white marble terrace, elevated two stories above the surrounding courtyard to…
Listen in the app4The Marble Carriage Way — The Path of 20,000 Men
Behind the Hall of Preserving Harmony lies a marvel of engineering: the Great Stone Carving. This massive slab of white marble, over sixteen meters long and weighing over two hundred tons, forms a central ramp that only the…
Listen in the app5The Inner Court — The Women’s Realm and the Eunuchs
As we cross the Gate of Heavenly Purity, we enter the Nei-ting, or Inner Court. This was the domestic heart of the empire, a strictly private world where the Emperor lived with his family, his consorts, and his concubines. …
Listen in the app6The Palace of Cixi — The Power Behind the Throne
In the Western Six Palaces, we find the Choo-shioo Gong, the residence of one of the most notorious figures in Chinese history: the Empress Dowager Tsee-shee. Originally a middle-ranking concubine, she rose to power after bearing…
Listen in the app7The Gallery of Treasures — Opulence of the Ming and Qing
To see the true wealth of the emperors, we must visit the Treasure Gallery, located in the Palace of Tranquil Longevity. This area was designed by the Chian-lung Emperor as a retirement complex, a 'miniature Forbidden City'…
Listen in the app8The Imperial Garden — A Landscape of Harmony
Our journey concludes in the Yoo-hoo-yuan, or Imperial Garden, at the northern end of the Forbidden City. This garden was the private retreat for the imperial family, a place of leisure and reflection. …
Listen in the app9Final Reflections
As we stand outside the Shen-wu Men, or Gate of Divine Might, reflecting on the scale of what we have just traversed, the Forbidden City reveals itself as more than just a collection of buildings. It is a physical manifestation…
Listen in the app10Closing
As we stand outside the Shen-wu Men, or Gate of Divine Might, reflecting on the scale of what we have just traversed, the Forbidden City reveals itself as more than just a collection of buildings. It is a physical manifestation…
Listen in the app
What is The Palace Museum?
The Palace Museum is a place in Donghuamen Subdistrict with 10 story sections on Tellby. You can read the opening of each section on this page; the sound plays in the app.
| Location | Donghuamen Subdistrict |
|---|---|
| Type | Activity |
| Story sections | 10 |
| Text language | English |
| Coordinates | 39.9156, 116.3908 |
| Last updated |
Nearby places
within a 5-minute walk
Forbidden CityActivity9 sections
Hall of Supreme HarmonyHeritage8 sections
Meridian GateHeritage8 sections
Palace of Earthly TranquilityHeritage8 sections
Beijing ShejitanHeritage6 sections
Imperial Ancestral TempleHeritage8 sections
The Palace MuseumHeritage5 sections
Meridian Gate (Wu Men)Heritage7 sections