No relevant info.Palace of Prince Gong is used to be home of He Shen, a famous malfeasant in history. He collected money unlawfully then bulit the luxurious palace for himself. Ultimately, he was executed by law. Now his home is setting out to civilians. This is really where come from where go into. Culture eventually belongs to all people in the world. It's the biggest compond with houses around courtyard at present in world.
Gong Wang Fu, or the Residence of Prince Gong covers 5.7 hectares of land in the heart of Beijing. It is the world's largest courtyard house.Since it was owned by Yi Yi, one of the highest-ranking nobles of the Qing Dynasty, the Residence of Prince Gong is not only big but also of high standards. This is reflected in its five-room facade and great number of rooms, including 12 halls and seven bedrooms. It was against the rules for lower ranking officials to have a residence of the same caliber. The presence of stone lions in front of the residences shows that their owners were officials above Rank Five. The number of hair knots on the stone lions further indicates their ranking in the hierarchy:the emperor was entitled to 13 lines of hair knots, princes 12 lines,and so on in descending order for officials of different ranks. House style and tile color had to follow strict rules, too. He Shen, a high-ranking official who had owned the residence before Prince Gong, was ordered by the emperor to kill himself. One of his crimes was his construction of a hall which was similar in style to the emperor's Ningshou Hall. Reflection of officials' status in the architectural styles of their residences was a striking feature of China's feudal hierarchical system. The Residence of Prince Gong is a rare example. I went to Gong Wang Fu with some friends on last sunday(7,July,2002),There were lots of Tourists in the palace,The tourists normally walk with the group and every group has an excellent guide(in Chinese)from Gong Wang Fu,As we only bought the single ticket but not group ticket,We slinkingly followed a group and listening the interesting stories from the lovely guide.The stories were almost about HeShen this first grafter in the Qing Dynasty... Even there were lots of tourists and guides around that you can not image but it was very nice feeling that every body concentrates on guide's introduction and follow the history and enjoy the views together. It's a beautiful and cute and interesting palace I would say.
The private residence of He Shen, a favorite minister of Qianlong during the Qing (1736-1796), the mansion was built in 1777. It consists of 31 pavilions, halls, and residential buildings; nine courtyards; several arched bridges; large ponds with islands and swans; one immense rock garden in the classic style; and even its own private pagoda for gazing at the moon. We wandered through the garden area which is the only place open to the public. We saw the gardens, huge rock formations that had been imported from south China, a pool in the shape of a bat [bats are a symbol of happiness – go figure!], a small lake, many pavilions.
There are really bats all over the place, since 'bat' in Chinese is associated with good luck and good fortune. If you look up at the etchings in the outdoor corridors you'll notice bats carved and painted in. The garden is spectacular. It's a much more relaxing place to visit than the Forbidden City or Summer Palace since its smaller and generally has less tourists, but just as nice. A competent tour guide can point out many of the little details that make these places so interesting. This picture for example, is of a stream flowing through a pagoda which was used for games back in the day. A teacup would be placed in the stream and whoever the cup stopped in front of would have to recite a poem. There are also many naturally formed rocks and other symbolic structures placed all over the mansion. Much of the mansion is being renovated though (in preparation for the 2008 Olympics), and we only saw about 1/4th of the place.
This residence of a Qing noble is really a beautiful place. It's one of the places where film crews like to shoot historical TV shows and movies. It features beautiful old Chinese-style architecture, gardens, a lake, and a theme of 'fu' (happiness). You may also get to see a performance in the old theatre as you sip tea and munch on Chinese snacks. If you want to know details about it, check out a website or a book about it, because I don't know a lot of specifics, I just know that I thoroughly enjoyed it and found it a beautiful and interesting place to walk through. But I would definitely recommend finding an English tour guide or someone who can translate. There are so many interesting stories and facts about the things you'll see there, but these are not written on any English signs or anything like that.
Well-preserved royally garden for aristocratic residences from the Qing Dynasty. The private residence of He Shen, a favorite minister of Qianlong during the Qing,the mansion was built in 1777. Later, it was bestowed upon Prince Gong by Emperor Xianfeng,thus the name "Prince Gong's Mansion".
