Ancient Ruins Of Large Lost Ming Palace Discovered In The Forbidden City

MessageToEagle | June 20, 2016 | Archaeology News | No Comments

MessageToEagle.com – Archaeologists have discovered what may be the wall foundations of a large Ming palace built in the 15th century, buried beneath a vast courtyard in the Forbidden City in the center of Beijing, China.

The Forbidden City was home to 24 emperors of the Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) Dynasties.

The construction of the grand palace started in the fourth year of Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty (1406), and ended in 1420.

In ancient times, the emperor was said to be a son of Heaven, and therefore Heaven’s supreme power was bestowed upon him. The emperors’ residence on earth was built as a replica of the Purple Palace where God was thought to live in Heaven.

According to Palace Museum director Shan Jixiang the 20-layer brick foundation was about 2.8 meters deep and unearthed from the square in the Cining Palace complex for the emperor’s mother in the western part of the Forbidden City.

Ruins of lost apalace discovered in the Forbidden City China — The relics of wall base and pile cap from the early Ming Dynasty are discovered in the Palace Museum in Beijing – Credit : Xinhua

Archaeologists also discovered a built-in wooden platform believed to have been used to support the brick foundation, as well as traces of two footing holes.

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“From the structure of the pit, we can see that the Forbidden City was no tofu-dreg project,” Shan said.

Ruins of lost palace discovered in the Forbidden City, China. — Ruins of early Ming Dynasty palace buildings have been uncovered in the Forbidden City. They include wall foundations that appear to have been built on top of a wooden platform, which experts say suggests the early buildings in the Palace had been built to last the test of time.

Last year, researchers came across foundations for 16 huge pillars beneath the garden of the Cining Palace. It is assumed that the newly discovered wall foundation and the pillar foundations all belonged to a huge palace destroyed in the late Ming era.

The Forbidden City is now listed as a World Heritage site and features the largest collection of ancient wooden buildings in the world.

A palace where at least 10 Qing emperors, including the last, Puyi, lived and studied will open to the public in the near future.

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