Chinese authorities have reopened one of the most beautiful parts of the Forbidden City in Beijing after over a century, thanks to a restoration project that took five times as long as the site’s original Qing dynasty construction.
The Qianlong Garden was first made for the Qianlong emperor, whose 60-year reign was one of the longest in Chinese (and world) history. Officially, Emperor Gaozong of Qing, sometimes called Hongli, ruled from 1735 to 1796, though in reality, he held on to power until his death in 1799. During that time, China underwent military expansion, built prosperity and experienced a golden age of the arts and crafts. At that point, the Forbidden City was already 200 years old, and Hongli’s reign saw it restored and reconstructed.
So, when someone questioned Hongli’s rule, he did not take it well, planning his abdication for over 20 years and building the Palace of Tranquil Longevity and Qianlong Garden in readiness for his retirement. The Garden itself took five years to create, but, after falling into disrepair, by the mid-20th century, it was being used for storage and rubbish.
Now, after a 25-year and estimated $18-million restoration project, part-enabled by the World Monuments Fund (WMF), it is open to the public in a way Hongli would never have dreamed – and a dream-like space it is. Travel Tomorrow visited a month after its reopening. Four interconnected courtyards featuring rock gardens, ancient trees, and waterways make the 27 retirement structures Hongli created for himself into a harmonious ensemble that President Xi Jinping has called an “important symbol of the Chinese civilization.”
Inside the buildings await “extraordinary examples of Chinese interior design”, praised by the WMF. They include superlative silk trompe l’oeil murals and objects with jade inlays and bamboo marquetry that at times required today’s restorers to relearn artisanal techniques and intangible heritage that had fallen from memory, as well as updating them with “modern conservation science,” a spokesperson told The Art Newspaper.
In an extraordinary feat of timing, too, the Qianlong Garden managed to open in time for the Palace Museum’s 100th anniversary and the Chinese Golden Week holiday. When I was there at the end of October, the crowds were gone and only the autumn sunshine remained, gently dappling the courtyards through the trees. Just as Hongli had planned, it was a peaceful and otherworldly retreat.
Would-be visitors should still ensure they reserve well ahead, buying a Palace Museum ticket and leaving plenty of time when exploring the Forbidden City’s 720,000-square-metre complex and hundreds of thousands of artefacts to enjoy this latest addition’s unique atmosphere, which the museum itself declares “the most exquisite and beautifully decorated garden” in the entire complex.
