The Forbidden City in Beijing

The Forbidden City was the royal palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties in China, covering an area of about 720,000 square meters, with a building area of about 150,000 square meters. It consists of more than seventy palaces of various sizes. It is said that the Forbidden City has a total of 9999.5 rooms, but according to the experts' on-site measurement in 1973, there are actually 8707 rooms. The architecture within the Forbidden City is divided into two parts: the Outer Court and the Inner Court. The center of the Outer Court consists of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Hall of Central Harmony, and the Hall of Preserving Harmony, collectively known as the Three Great Halls. Flanking the Three Great Halls on both sides are the Hall of Literary Glory and the Hall of Martial Valor, which are two groups of buildings. The center of the Inner Court is the Palace of Heavenly Purity, the Hall of Union, and the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, collectively known as the Rear Three Palaces, which were the main living quarters of the emperor and empress. Behind these is the Imperial Garden. Arranged on both sides of the Rear Three Palaces are the East and West Six Palaces, where the concubines lived and rested.