Xian Daming Palace to Open in October

09/27/2010 15:20:45

Daming Palace National Heritage Park, a nominated site for World Heritage List, will open to visitors on China's National Day (October 1st) in Xian, the provincial city of Shaanxi Province in Central China.

                       Panorama of the Daming Palace                                The centeral hall of Daming Palace

Situated on Longshou Yuan (Dragon Head Plain) in the north suburb of Xian City, the Daming Palace is often referred as the Forbidden City of Tang Daynasty (618 - 907 AD).

  Traditional Architectures inside the Daming Heritage Park               Fabulous night view of Dafeng Gate

History of Daming Palace

Built in 634 AD by the famous Emperor Tang Taizong (also called Emperor Li Shiming) as a residence for his father, the palace was initially named "Yong'an Palace", but renamed "Daming Palace" just one year later.

In 662, when Emperor Tang Gaozong (Emperor Li Zhi) took the throne, he decided to add grand extensive architectures and gardens to the palace and made the Daming Palace the residence of the royal family. Till then, the palace had its hay day in scale, covering an area of 3.2 square kilometers which was four times bigger than Beijing's Forbidden City. Countless terraces, halls, temples, pavilions and administrative facilities were built and the smart lay-out make them harmonious untied as a whole. Surrounding the huge palace was the 7.6 km-long defensive city wall characterized with 11 impressive gates. Surely, it was the greatest palace in Chang'an (previous Xian), the political hub of the Tang Empire for 240 years, and one of the most magnificent palace complexes the world.

Pitifully, it was burned down in 896 AD during rebellion wars that followed. It was recorded that it took two months till the fire was finally put out. What remained were just the huge foundations of the palace, some of which can still be seen in the Daming Palace National Heritage Park now.

A huge foundation that remained in the Daming Palace Heritage Park

Daming Palace's Restoration and Promotion

Three years ago, Xian local government passed a scheme to restore the Daming Palace and got the approval of Chinese central government. Soon The Daming Palace Heritage Site Preservation Revelation Project came out with details. According to DMGYZ website, the project is a perfect integration between preservation of ancient cultural heritage and construction of ecological landscape. It will become a masterpiece of China royal palace, accommodating citizens' needs of recreation, residence and environment, and mirroring the international standards for improving the humanistic ambience and building up new urban districts.

To make Daming Palace known to more, Xian municipal government has built a Daming Palace Pavilion, a miniature of the real palace, in the Shanghai Expo Park. Reportedly, 800,000 visitors have toured the pavilion and many said it was marvelous and wanted to make a Xian tour to see the real Daming Palace.

Take a Xian tour now, or you could customize a China tour to enjoy the Daming Palace.