2020 is a special year for the Forbidden City in Beijing: the Forbidden City was built for 600 years; it has gone through nearly a century since the establishment of the Palace Museum in 1925. For such a big book as the Forbidden City, there are probably not many people who can read through and understand it. However, Zhu Jiaxuan, a famous cultural relics expert and expert in Qing history who has guarded the Forbidden City for more than half a century, not only read through, but also understood. Reading the newly published "Beijing Records of Hearing and Seeing", Zhu Jiazhuo can clearly explain the corners and corners of the Forbidden City, and he is also known as the "Forbidden City Living Dictionary". In addition, the author is also familiar with the historical geography, geographical features, cultural relics and monuments of Beijing City. Following the author's footsteps, what is presented to us is a picture of old Beijing from the royal culture to the customs of the city.
Zhu Jiayun's "Beijing Smell and See"
The book begins with an article titled "A Visitor's Impression of the Palace Museum," an article written in 1985 that recalls Zhu Jiayun's 60 years ago when he followed his parents, brother, and sister to the Forbidden City. At that time, the Forbidden City retained the original state of the scene when Puyi left the palace: in the dormitory, there were apples that had been bitten and biscuit boxes with lids on the table; the month cards (calendars) hanging on the walls were still turned over to the day when the owner of the house left... The Qianqing Palace, Kunning Palace, etc. all opened their doors and allowed them to enter, and the palace was finally all open. For Zhu Jiaxuan, who was 12 years old at the time, he felt great joy, "In the past, the people could not come in, but today not only can they come in, but every courtyard has been walked." After this, the author visited the Forbidden City many times. In 1943, Zhu Jiahuan came to the Forbidden City as a temporary worker. Although his father, Zhu Wenjun, was a famous epigrapher who had been fascinated by cultural relics since he was a child, it was the first time that he had truly made it a job. "I think this job has a charm that envelops you and can give you a lot of joy." After the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japan, Zhu Jiahuan officially became a staff member of the Palace Museum. At this point, he became a participant from a visitor and formed a relationship with the Forbidden City for more than half a century.
Taihe Hall
For many visitors, to visit the Forbidden City, you must go to the Taihe Temple to see it and see the true appearance of the Kowloon Throne, which often appears in film and television dramas. In fact, regarding the throne of the Taihe Hall, there is also such a story in the book: In 1915, Yuan Shikai ascended the throne as empress, moved the carved dragon and gold chair to nowhere, and installed a special chair in front of the screen that combines Chinese and Western styles. The back of the chair is extremely high and the seat surface is very low. It is said that because Yuan Shikai's legs are short, but he also wants to show the style of the emperor, he adopts the style of a Western-style high-backed chair. In 1947, the Palace Museum took over the former antiquities exhibition hall and removed Yuan Shikai's large chair, intending to replace it with a dragon chair made in the Qing Dynasty. So Zhu Jiayun spent four or five years searching for its whereabouts. He recalled: I finally found a broken chair in a place where there were piles of tattered house materials, beams and, and flowers and teeth, and I looked at it. The four pillars were wrapped around the dragon, and they were all broken, and they stood up like a circle chair. At the same time, I saw a photograph taken by a Japanese person, which was taken here by their occupiers in the year of Gengzi, and it was such a chair. At the time, it was determined that it might be the throne that was missing. Later, from the portrait of the Kangxi Emperor, I saw a statue sitting on a throne, and it was also sitting on this throne. In September 1964, the restored dragon chair was displayed on the Taihe Hall. It can be said that in research and appraisal, Zhu Jiahun relies not only on experience and experience, but also on historical materials, archives and field investigations.
The throne of the Taihe Temple
In the ming and qing dynasties, the traditional style of the first house garden in Beijing, people who have lived in Beijing for a long time do not feel any outstanding features. However, when we look at the residential gardens in Nanjing, Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Yangzhou and Chengdu, we will realize that although the first residential gardens in Beijing have also absorbed a lot of Jiangnan gardening techniques, they still have their own characteristics of gardening. The examination and record of the old house in Beijing in the second series of the book is particularly precious today. Among them, there are not only the examination of whether the predecessor of today's Beijing Zoo is Leshan Garden or Sanbeizi Garden, but also the old appearance of prince's mansion and Dong'an Market in Bodol Gartai, although many residential gardens have undergone tremendous changes with the development of the times, but in the author's view, "now according to memory, trace the scenery and resume of the gardens as a material for further research." ”
Some people say that art is connected. Zhu Jiazhuo also has deep achievements in the study and performance of Peking Opera. Since childhood, he has loved opera, studied under many famous artists, and is a world-recognized Yang School artist, and has appeared on many occasions. The third series of the book leaves a lot of historical materials about Peking Opera, including the undertaking play of the old Shengping Bureau in the Forbidden City, the tanghui play of Gong Wangfu, and Mei Lanfang's narration. What is particularly commendable is that Zhu Jiazhuo and his wife Zhao Zhongxun both love opera, and the two once-husbands sang and performed "Proud Edge" with their wives, which became a good story.
Under the author's pen, we feel his attachment, beauty and imagination of working in the Forbidden City for decades, through the author's eloquent narration, those past years and palms are not only the testimony of the past, but also the connection between history and the present. The people and scenes, the world and the feelings recorded in this book of hearings and seeing are still gratifying and touching today.
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