故宫隐香 倦勤斋揭纱

Text by Zhao Min Compiled by Madeline Translation by Madeline, Leo Photos by Chen He, Mr. Lion

故宫隐香 倦勤斋揭纱

Text by Zhao Min Compiled by Madeline Translation by Madeline, Leo Photos by Chen He, Mr. Lion

AN IMPERIAL SECRET UNVEILED

When Emperor Qianlong was in power he had a dream to retreat into an easeful old age after 60 years of ruling the country. At the time, with the best engineers, craftsmen, and building materials, the Imperial Palace had all it needed to build a grand palace garden, later known as “the Qianlong Garden”.

The world's only surviving big ensemble of trompe-l'ceil paintings (with a size of 170 sqm)

These drawings, in the typical perspective drawing style of the time in Europe, were first introduced to the Qing palace by Italian Jesuit painter Giuseppe Castiglione who borrowed the style from the panoramic pictures of the exquisite ceilings of European churches.

墙面和天花板上是世界上仅存的巨幅通景画——著名的倦勤斋170平米“通景画”，采用了当时欧洲流行的一点透视画法，使观者身在屋内，却如同置身宫外的庭园。最早由欧洲传教士画家郎世宁借鉴欧洲教堂中天顶画和全景画的形式移植于清代宫廷中。

乾隆皇帝在位的时候有个愿望——做60年皇帝，然后归政养老做太上皇。

乾隆盛世国力强盛，园内集中了当时国内顶尖的建筑技艺和材料，拥有『乾隆花园』建成的一切条件。

于是，在18世纪，这个属于皇帝个人的梦想，都在这座花园里实现了。

1. Paintings of pergolas on the ceiling顶部紫藤架手绘

2. Near the moon gate there are two cranes and a pair of magpies. In Chinese culture, cranes are a symbol of longevity and magpies auspiciousness.在月亮门外的庭园有一对仙鹤和一对喜鹊；仙鹤象征长寿，喜鹊象征吉祥。

3. A view toward the west from the second floor of the fifth eastside room

东五间二层西视

4. The lounge in the east side-room on the first floor of the fifth east-side room

东五间一层东次间座塌

5.An upturned roofridge

戏台翼角

Qianlong Garden was built between 1771 and

1776, and the construction started 20 years

before Emperor Qianlong's eventual retirement.

The garden is also called “the Palace of Tranquil Longevity”. Designed by the emperor himself, the garden ref l ects the emperor's broad cultural tastes.

While most buildings in the Imperial Palace have

been open to the public for more than 60 years,

Juanqin Zhai retirement suite at the far back of

Qianlong Garden was largely abandoned after the last emperor left the Forbidden City in 1924. Not

until two decades ago was Juanqin Zhai finally

discovered and brought to light by a reconstruction team. This private resting place was mainly used as

a theatre for the emperor, where he was entertained.

Although its name takes after the meaning of “to

retreat into an easeful old age”, Emperor Qianlong never really lived there. Even when he retired, he

never completely relinquished his power to his son. Therefore, to him, Juanqin Zhai functioned more like a theatre house, where he came once in a while just to be entertained.

The interiors of Juanqin Zhai are of extravagant

design, using the finest materials and exceptional Chinese craftsmanship, and incorporating

European artistic techniques such as trompe l'oeil.

3. A view toward the west from the second floor of the fifth eastside room东五间二层西视

4. The lounge in the east side-room on the first floor of the fifth east-side room东五间一层东次间座塌

5.An upturned roofridge戏台翼角

Wang Shiwei, leader of the SINO-US Qianlong Garden Conservation Project, toldNihao∶“People come here to see old palaces, but a lot of them can only be appreciated from the outside. Besides, the Forbidden City has gradually changed throughout the years.”

Fortunately, Juanqin Zhai has survived relatively unaltered from the time it was constructed. “This is why we need to start protecting it as soon as we can, so as to keep it the way it was 240 years ago,”said Wang.

The suite numbers among the finest extant examples of eighteenth-century imperial interiors in China, and among all the other buildings that have been repaired in the Forbidden City, Juanqin Zhai is the luckiest one in terms of complete protective restoration.

The project leader said∶“ Originally, to better store and protect the antiques, we would rather keep the items in storage. But we decided to bring them back into the light, after a series of careful research projects. This way, we help the visitors get a better taste of the past, while giving the relics the dignity they deserve.”

Juanqin Zhai has a rather simple layout∶ it is split into nine rooms, including five rooms in the two floors in the east and four rooms in the west. Those in the west were designed to be a graceful indoor theatre, showing great contrast to the stately vibe of the rest of the imperial palace倦勤斋面南向，北靠红墙，其布局形式是简单的九间房的格局。

AUTHOR: ZHAO MINArchitectural critic Architectural Society of China (ASC)作者：赵敏建筑评论人中国建筑学会资深会员

PHOTOGRAPHER: CHEN HEPhotographer of architectural culture heritage摄影：陈鹤建筑文化遗产摄影师

Juan Qin Studio's green glazed tile roof倦勤斋绿瓦黄剪边屋面

“The qianlong Garden Conservation Project” is expected to finish in 2020, and will be opened to the public by then.乾隆花园保护项目预计在2020年完成并对外开放参观。Map by Haolun Zhang

建于1771—1776年，乾隆花园又称宁寿宫花园，是清朝乾隆皇帝退位前20多年就开始为自己修建的太上皇宫。这座相传由乾隆亲自设计的皇家园林融入了乾隆下江南后的灵感和感悟，将中国古典造园的精髓和故宫景致融会贯通，是清朝留存下来的历史瑰宝。

当大多数故宫殿宇都已为人们所熟悉，乾隆花园最北侧的院子里却有一座皇家寝宫被隐藏了200年之久，直到上个世纪末才被发现。这个私人空间正是太上皇的栖息之所——“倦勤斋”。在逾十年紧锣密鼓的修复之后，这个皇帝寝宫的神秘面纱终于被缓缓揭下，展现在人们眼前，接受世人倾羡的目光。

虽然“倦勤斋”取“耄期倦于勤”之意，然而，乾隆却并未在这里居住过。即使他做了太上皇，也并没有真正交出过手中的权力。因此，倦勤斋当时的作用更接近于乾隆听戏消遣的场所。

据中美合作故宫乾隆花园保护项目总负责人王时伟介绍，倦勤斋的室内空间及平面被分为多个小空间，比如进门就可见的明间宝座、靠东边五间的两层仙楼等。西边四间则被设计成一座室内戏台，非但没有皇宫威严的气势，反而颇有小桥流水的雅趣。

“故宫博物院几经兴衰，历史上经历过多次修复，但是这样完整而全面地对其中一个建筑的室内外做保护性修复研究还是首次。”王时伟说道。

作为整个紫禁城内受后代扰动较少的大片园区，倦勤斋基本上维持着1776年竣工后的风貌，因此修复后可达到较高的还原度。“观众来故宫首先想看的还是旧存皇宫的面貌，实际上现在很多故宫博物院的殿宇只能看外壳，整体性的故宫建筑已经逐渐随着历史的推移悄然演变。倦勤斋的保存相对较好，所以我们想把它尽量完整地抢救和保护下来。”王时伟如是说。

“原先，为了防盗和保存，我们宁可把室内陈设物搁在库房里。但是按照倦勤斋保护修缮的原则，我们对皇家文化进行了整体性地研究和展示，让搁置库房的各种摆设件重新进入室内环境复原系统——通过修复让原先室内的陈设物和过去摆放在私人活动场所的原状文物回到原位——此举不仅能让参观者更加真实立体地解读故宫的历史，还使文物重获尊严。”