The Shenyang Imperial Palace Ancestral Temple, built by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, held the completion ceremony of the repair project on the 5th and opened the exhibition of the "First Emperor's Temple of the Qing Dynasty" to the public.

On the east side of the Great Qing gate of the Forbidden City in Shenyang, there is an independent courtyard with red walls and yellow tiles. It is located within the royal palace and is not the place where the emperors and Empresses lived. There is the Shengjing Imperial Ancestral Temple built in 1781.

“Imperial Ancestral Temple” is the place where the emperor worshipped the ancestors. In 1778, when Emperor Qianlong came to Shenyang for the third time, he felt that the Shengjing Tai Temple should be restored to make the building system of the founding capital of the Qing Dynasty more complete. So he ordered the original Taoist Temple , the “Sanguan Temple”, on the east side of the Great Qing gate be moved to another place, and the temple was built here. After the completion of Shengjing Ancestral Temple, all the emperors who came to Shenyang must go to the temple to salute the jewels and jade books of their ancestors before entering the Forbidden City. Therefore, this building has a high status despite its small size. Any place in the Forbidden City is unmatched by the usual "temple".

The repair project of the Ancestral Temple Group of the Forbidden City in Shenyang is a key project approved by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage. It is also the first public demonstration project for the protection of cultural relics in Liaoning Province. During the renovation of the temple complex, in accordance with the progress of the repair works, every time the important process stage and time node of the ancient building renovation were organized, a group of public observers were recruited to enter the repair site for on-site observation and experience activities. During the 6 months of the repair period, 4 batches and 80 observers were organized to observe and experience the “Wearing a sackcloth gown”, “Doing the Line”, “Picking the Ridge”, “painting over with blood material oil” and other repairing technology of ancient buildings, which has been welcomed and praised by the public.

The exhibition "The First Temple of the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty" was also launched on the same day. The exhibition is based on the use of the two temples in the initial construction and relocation of the temple. On the basis of respecting the historical facts, combined with the architectural pattern of the main hall and the matching hall, the exhibition is restored in the main hall. The east and west halls are used to introduce the history and use condition of the temple, using restoration, video and exhibition boards various forms, etc, telling the audience about the history of the temple and related stories.

Source: Xinhua News Agency

Time: 2019-10-05