Among the many Halls inside the Forbidden City, the Hall of
Preserving Harmony stood out from others. Its structure retained
the Song snd Yuan Dynasties' (10th to 14th centuries) traditions
that was rarely used in the Qing Dynasty. Even though it is
not as extravagant as the throne room of the Hall of Great Harmony,
the throne room in this Hall is also decorated with elegant
designs with detailed gilt works and intricate design patterns
on the ceiling.
During Qing Dynasty, the Emperor entertained Mongol princes
in this Hall during New Year's Eve. It is a tradition, a goodwill
gesture, also, the highest examination to bureaucratic advancement.
The most impressive architectural design in the stone sculptures
can be found along the Imperial Pavement at the back of this
Hall.
It is 250 tones of marble ramp leading from the back terrace
to the courtyard. The marble pavement is adorned with an intricate
design of nine dragons in relief carving. Clouds surrounding
the dragons and roaring waves under - suggesting the Emperor's
absolute power to rule, including the force of nature - the
cloud, the wind and the sea. This is a truly masterpiece of
stone sculpture.
On the jade pen, two relief dragons craved around the pen barrel
- the pillar of the pen. The dragon motifs are influenced by
the dragons on this stone pavement.
