Do you known the famous Epang Palace of Qin Dynasty
Posted by ugfanfan on November 28th, 2014
Epang Gong Palace is one of the great palaces of the Qin Dynasty. Its relics are located in the Epang Village area, 15 kilometres west in the West District of Xi’an City. It was originally built in 212 B.C., and is one of China’s key national cultural preservation centres.
After national unification by the Emperor Shihuang in the Qin Dynasty, the country became increasingly strong and the population in Xian Yang, the capital city, increased. In the 35th year of his reign (212 B.C.), Emperor Shihuang began to build the Epang Palace in the Shang Lin Garden on the south bank of the Weishui River. Only the front hall was completed during his lifetime. As described in The Records of the Great Historian: The Biography of Qin Emperor Shihuang, the front hall of the Epang Palace was 690 metres from east to west and 115 metres from south to north, with a capacity of 10,000 people. A road from the palace led straight to Zhongnan Mountain and a channel was dug near the peak of the mountain so as to build up other palaces on it. Based on the historical records, the Epang palace covered such an big area of around two million square metres that its building reached to the edge of the South bank of the Weishui River. Crossing the River from the Palace, one will arrive at an area belonging to Xianyang, another city on the North bank of the River, 24 kilometres in the west from Xi’an. As such a magnificent project, it is easy to imagine its costs of money and manpower. After the death of Emperor Shihuang, the succeeding emperor, Huhai, continued to construct the palace, with a storied building built every 5 steps and a pavilion every 10 steps. Groups of buildings and pavilions stretched westward to Xianyang City and eastward to Lintong City, covering around 2 million square metres and towering high into the sky. Renowned poet Du Mu of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) described the Epang Palace in detail in his Epang Palace Fu (fu is one of the Chinese literary forms akin to poetry). During the wars at the end of the Qin Dynasty, Xiang Yu captured Xianyang City and burned down the splendid Epang Palace.
Epang Palace is one of the most well-known palace complexes in Chinese history. In the Epang Fu, the poet Du Mu’s description is fascinating, and because the palace was burned, this description (and some relics) is the only insight we have on what the palace looked like. However, these were enough for the Shaanxi Qin Epang Palace Tourism Development Corporation to rebuild the palace, including the front hall, promenade, magnet gate, Tower of Heaven, Temple of Earth, Lanchi Pool, Lanchi Palace, palaces for the six countries, and beacon towers, etc.. They are true to the very scenic description in Du Mu’s poem. There are various performances outside the Palace every day, including the Emperor Shihuang’s Enthronement Ceremony, the Troops on Expedition reenactment, the National Unification performance, the Assassination by Jin Ke, the Choosing Concubines, the Sing and Dance for the Good Times, the Chime-bell music and dance, folk opera and so on. It is now an ideal tourist destination for vacationing, shopping and viewing the splendors of an ancient time.
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