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China to open Qianlong Emperor's retirement home to the public
China unveiled the retirement studio of Emperor Qianlong after five years of restoration,
showing an architectural masterpiece that sheds light on the philosophy and taste of the
Qing Dynasty's second-longest serving ruler.
The Palace Museum, the state custodian of China's 600-year- old Forbidden City, may
open Juanqinzhai (the Studio of Exhaustion From Diligent Service, Lodge of Retirement),
refurbished at $3 million by the New York- based World Monuments Fund, to the public for
the first time ``on a limited basis,'' said Director Zheng Xinmiao.
``This studio was designed for one man to enjoy his peace and solitude away from the
heavy duties of emperorship, and not for hordes of modern-day tourists,'' said Zheng,
after a Beijing press conference yesterday. ``So, we will have to be very selective in how
we open this to the world.''
Built in 1776 -- the 41st year of Qianlong's 60-year reign -- Juanqinzhai was part of a
two-acre complex of ornate gardens and pavilions the emperor designed for himself as a
retirement villa.
Restoring Juanqinzhai is part of a broader government project to refurbish Qianlong's
two-acre retirement grounds Ningshougong (the Palace of Tranquility and Longevity) by
2017, said Nancy Berliner, curator of Chinese art at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem,
Massachusetts, who contributed to the pavilion's restoration. The total cost, involving
another 26 pavilions and gardens, is estimated at between $12 million and $15 million,
said World Monuments Fund President Bonnie Burnham.
Wisteria Pattern
The ceiling of Juanqinzhai's theater room (view theater's pre-restoration panorama) was
covered in silk with an intricate wisteria pattern. In an adjoining room where Qianlong
received visitors, walls were lined with double-sided silk embroidery atop zitan wooden
panels inlaid with the inner skin of bamboo.
The emperor, who ordered a trade route built from the jade mines of modern-day
Myanmar to southern China for carrying jadeite to the imperial capital, would display his
favorite gems, ceramics and artworks in the studio.
Qianlong was deeply interested and involved in every aspect of the Juanqinzhai's design
and construction, said Berliner. The studio was the first time the technique of embroidering
on both sides of a silk screen was used in an interior decor.
The monarch commissioned an indoor theater in the studio, covering the entire room with
silk murals depicting Beijing's verdant hills, palace buildings and exotic fowls using the
perspective of trompe l'oeil, an unusual technique in 18th-century China, she said.
``He was the kind of connoisseur who probably derived as much pleasure from designing it
and conceiving it as actually using it,'' Berliner said.
Unused, Unoccupied
Qianlong never actually used Juanqinzhai. He abdicated in 1795 as a filial act to avoid
surpassing the 61-year record reign held by his grandfather, the Emperor Kangxi.
He never moved out of his formal abode at Qianqinggong even after ceding his throne to
Emperor Jiaqing, and continued to wield influence till his death in 1799.
On his death bed, Qianlong issued an edict for Juanqinzhai to be used as the retirement
house for his successors, establishing perhaps one of China's first preservation laws, said
World Monuments Fund Executive Vice President Henry Ng, after a press conference
yesterday at the former imperial palace. The studio remained mostly unused and
untouched until the last of the Manchu emperors Puyi was driven out of the palace in 1924.
``It was like a wedding day'' when the veils were lifted off the restoration for the first time,
Ng said. ``We can't believe how stunning and beautiful everything is'' once they're all put
together, he said.
Mulberry Paper
Restoration work involved the use of painting and adhesion techniques that are no longer
employed. Restorers also had to reproduce a high-cellulose paper made from the fibers of
mulberry trees -- no longer made in China when conservation began in 2003 - - for
holding up the murals.
``Based on historical records, we know the palace used paper made in Anhui, and after
some searching, we found an artisan who was able to reproduce the material using the
traditional technique,'' said T.K. McClintock, founder of Studio TKM Ltd., a Somerville,
Massachusetts-based paper specialist who advised on the restoration work.
Working according to McClintock's specification, the Anhui artisan laid stone slabs on a
riverbed where he washed his mulberry fiber, to avoid stirring up silt. The artisan, in his
30s, is now the exclusive supplier of high-grade paper to the conservation project's
remaining pavilions.
``He's young enough to last us through the project,'' McClintock said.
By Eugene Tang(bloomberg)
Nov 12, 2008
China unveiled the retirement studio of Emperor Qianlong after five years of restoration,
showing an architectural masterpiece that sheds light on the philosophy and taste of the
Qing Dynasty's second-longest serving ruler.
The Palace Museum, the state custodian of China's 600-year- old Forbidden City, may
open Juanqinzhai (the Studio of Exhaustion From Diligent Service, Lodge of Retirement),
refurbished at $3 million by the New York- based World Monuments Fund, to the public for
the first time ``on a limited basis,'' said Director Zheng Xinmiao.
``This studio was designed for one man to enjoy his peace and solitude away from the
heavy duties of emperorship, and not for hordes of modern-day tourists,'' said Zheng,
after a Beijing press conference yesterday. ``So, we will have to be very selective in how
we open this to the world.''
Built in 1776 -- the 41st year of Qianlong's 60-year reign -- Juanqinzhai was part of a
two-acre complex of ornate gardens and pavilions the emperor designed for himself as a
retirement villa.
Restoring Juanqinzhai is part of a broader government project to refurbish Qianlong's
two-acre retirement grounds Ningshougong (the Palace of Tranquility and Longevity) by
2017, said Nancy Berliner, curator of Chinese art at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem,
Massachusetts, who contributed to the pavilion's restoration. The total cost, involving
another 26 pavilions and gardens, is estimated at between $12 million and $15 million,
said World Monuments Fund President Bonnie Burnham.
Wisteria Pattern
The ceiling of Juanqinzhai's theater room (view theater's pre-restoration panorama) was
covered in silk with an intricate wisteria pattern. In an adjoining room where Qianlong
received visitors, walls were lined with double-sided silk embroidery atop zitan wooden
panels inlaid with the inner skin of bamboo.
The emperor, who ordered a trade route built from the jade mines of modern-day
Myanmar to southern China for carrying jadeite to the imperial capital, would display his
favorite gems, ceramics and artworks in the studio.
Qianlong was deeply interested and involved in every aspect of the Juanqinzhai's design
and construction, said Berliner. The studio was the first time the technique of embroidering
on both sides of a silk screen was used in an interior decor.
The monarch commissioned an indoor theater in the studio, covering the entire room with
silk murals depicting Beijing's verdant hills, palace buildings and exotic fowls using the
perspective of trompe l'oeil, an unusual technique in 18th-century China, she said.
``He was the kind of connoisseur who probably derived as much pleasure from designing it
and conceiving it as actually using it,'' Berliner said.
Unused, Unoccupied
Qianlong never actually used Juanqinzhai. He abdicated in 1795 as a filial act to avoid
surpassing the 61-year record reign held by his grandfather, the Emperor Kangxi.
He never moved out of his formal abode at Qianqinggong even after ceding his throne to
Emperor Jiaqing, and continued to wield influence till his death in 1799.
On his death bed, Qianlong issued an edict for Juanqinzhai to be used as the retirement
house for his successors, establishing perhaps one of China's first preservation laws, said
World Monuments Fund Executive Vice President Henry Ng, after a press conference
yesterday at the former imperial palace. The studio remained mostly unused and
untouched until the last of the Manchu emperors Puyi was driven out of the palace in 1924.
``It was like a wedding day'' when the veils were lifted off the restoration for the first time,
Ng said. ``We can't believe how stunning and beautiful everything is'' once they're all put
together, he said.
Mulberry Paper
Restoration work involved the use of painting and adhesion techniques that are no longer
employed. Restorers also had to reproduce a high-cellulose paper made from the fibers of
mulberry trees -- no longer made in China when conservation began in 2003 - - for
holding up the murals.
``Based on historical records, we know the palace used paper made in Anhui, and after
some searching, we found an artisan who was able to reproduce the material using the
traditional technique,'' said T.K. McClintock, founder of Studio TKM Ltd., a Somerville,
Massachusetts-based paper specialist who advised on the restoration work.
Working according to McClintock's specification, the Anhui artisan laid stone slabs on a
riverbed where he washed his mulberry fiber, to avoid stirring up silt. The artisan, in his
30s, is now the exclusive supplier of high-grade paper to the conservation project's
remaining pavilions.
``He's young enough to last us through the project,'' McClintock said.
By Eugene Tang(bloomberg)
Nov 12, 2008
故宫倦勤斋
作为故宫乾隆花园十年修复工程的第一部分，倦勤斋保护工程昨日宣告竣工，预计将在明年
对公众有限度开放。整个乾隆花园修复和保护工作总共分为四个阶 段，预计将在2017年全部
完工。故宫博物院院长郑欣淼称：“倦勤斋保护项目作为故宫大修的组成部分，具有试点意
义，其经验将被推广到整个故宫。”
倦勤斋是乾隆退位后的居所
倦勤斋，顾名思义就是倦于勤务、倦于朝政之地，是乾隆皇帝为自己1795年退位后“颐
养天年”而预建的，汇聚了最重要、最精美、最奢华的室内装饰。
乾隆花园是乾隆于1771到1776年间作为宁寿宫的一部分来兴建的，面积六千四百多平方
米。当时他集中了全国最好的材料和艺匠来兴建乾隆花园里的建筑。创造了代表当时中国奢
侈优雅空间和登峰造极的内装饰艺术。
自从末代皇帝溥仪1924年离开紫禁城后，倦勤斋和乾隆花园内的其它26座建筑内的重要
内装饰基本上保存下来。尽管紫禁城许多地方都陆续对外开放，倦勤斋和乾隆花园里的部分
建筑从未对外开放过。
2001年，故宫博物院和世界建筑文物保护基金会成立了一个国际合作队伍来修复保护倦
勤斋，后来这一保护项目扩展到它所在的乾隆花园里的所有建筑。
精美陈设令人叹为观止
在约略200平方米的倦勤斋里流连，记者发现内部的装修从材料的选择到制作的方法都
具有浓浓的江南风韵，乾隆花园素有“紫禁城里的小江南”之美 誉，在以仙楼围成的中厅内，
精美的竹丝镶嵌、双面绣、玉雕和木雕艺术令人叹为观止。室内还设有一小戏台，据说乾隆
非常喜爱在此听“岔曲”，戏台上方的天花 板上全部都是用欧洲透视方法绘出的枝藤茂密的紫
罗兰图案通景画，房间的墙壁上细腻地描绘了紫禁城里的建筑和山石景色。“如此大量反映18
世纪欧洲美学对中 国装饰艺术影响的通景画，不仅在紫禁城而且在全中国也是绝无仅有
的。”故宫博物院研究员聂崇正说。
故宫博物院院长郑欣淼指出：“倦勤斋保护项目一直遵循两个原则，一是真实性，二是完
整性。在真实性方面我们的信息来源主要有三个部分：一是建筑 本身，二是它的传统工艺和
技艺，三是丰富的历史记录。第二个理念是对故宫完整性的追求，乾隆花园所有的建筑空
间、建筑特色，包括它所表现出来的美学特征应 该都得到一个完整的保护，倦勤斋要保护的
也不单单是它的结构，所有的因素都应该是它完整性的组成部分。”
修缮经验将被推广到整个故宫
世界建筑文物保护基金会总裁波尼•布楠木说：“这个项目最大的挑战就是修复保护过程
中，如何在使用传统技艺和材料的同时又引用现代文物保护手法 和科学应用的方法。和故宫
博物院的合作使我们成功地接受了这一挑战。”郑欣淼强调倦勤斋作为故宫大修的组成部分，
具有试点的意义，它的经验将被推广到整个 乾隆花园，进而整个故宫。
虽然，倦勤斋的修复已经完成，但是郑欣淼称还有很多工作需要做，“比方说里面文物的
摆放，怎么样去完善，是否完全恢复乾隆时期的所有样子，可能都需要去考虑，所以我们总
的原则是有限制和有限度地对公众开放。
作为故宫乾隆花园十年修复工程的第一部分，倦勤斋保护工程昨日宣告竣工，预计将在明年
对公众有限度开放。整个乾隆花园修复和保护工作总共分为四个阶 段，预计将在2017年全部
完工。故宫博物院院长郑欣淼称：“倦勤斋保护项目作为故宫大修的组成部分，具有试点意
义，其经验将被推广到整个故宫。”
倦勤斋是乾隆退位后的居所
倦勤斋，顾名思义就是倦于勤务、倦于朝政之地，是乾隆皇帝为自己1795年退位后“颐
养天年”而预建的，汇聚了最重要、最精美、最奢华的室内装饰。
乾隆花园是乾隆于1771到1776年间作为宁寿宫的一部分来兴建的，面积六千四百多平方
米。当时他集中了全国最好的材料和艺匠来兴建乾隆花园里的建筑。创造了代表当时中国奢
侈优雅空间和登峰造极的内装饰艺术。
自从末代皇帝溥仪1924年离开紫禁城后，倦勤斋和乾隆花园内的其它26座建筑内的重要
内装饰基本上保存下来。尽管紫禁城许多地方都陆续对外开放，倦勤斋和乾隆花园里的部分
建筑从未对外开放过。
2001年，故宫博物院和世界建筑文物保护基金会成立了一个国际合作队伍来修复保护倦
勤斋，后来这一保护项目扩展到它所在的乾隆花园里的所有建筑。
精美陈设令人叹为观止
在约略200平方米的倦勤斋里流连，记者发现内部的装修从材料的选择到制作的方法都
具有浓浓的江南风韵，乾隆花园素有“紫禁城里的小江南”之美 誉，在以仙楼围成的中厅内，
精美的竹丝镶嵌、双面绣、玉雕和木雕艺术令人叹为观止。室内还设有一小戏台，据说乾隆
非常喜爱在此听“岔曲”，戏台上方的天花 板上全部都是用欧洲透视方法绘出的枝藤茂密的紫
罗兰图案通景画，房间的墙壁上细腻地描绘了紫禁城里的建筑和山石景色。“如此大量反映18
世纪欧洲美学对中 国装饰艺术影响的通景画，不仅在紫禁城而且在全中国也是绝无仅有
的。”故宫博物院研究员聂崇正说。
故宫博物院院长郑欣淼指出：“倦勤斋保护项目一直遵循两个原则，一是真实性，二是完
整性。在真实性方面我们的信息来源主要有三个部分：一是建筑 本身，二是它的传统工艺和
技艺，三是丰富的历史记录。第二个理念是对故宫完整性的追求，乾隆花园所有的建筑空
间、建筑特色，包括它所表现出来的美学特征应 该都得到一个完整的保护，倦勤斋要保护的
也不单单是它的结构，所有的因素都应该是它完整性的组成部分。”
修缮经验将被推广到整个故宫
世界建筑文物保护基金会总裁波尼•布楠木说：“这个项目最大的挑战就是修复保护过程
中，如何在使用传统技艺和材料的同时又引用现代文物保护手法 和科学应用的方法。和故宫
博物院的合作使我们成功地接受了这一挑战。”郑欣淼强调倦勤斋作为故宫大修的组成部分，
具有试点的意义，它的经验将被推广到整个 乾隆花园，进而整个故宫。
虽然，倦勤斋的修复已经完成，但是郑欣淼称还有很多工作需要做，“比方说里面文物的
摆放，怎么样去完善，是否完全恢复乾隆时期的所有样子，可能都需要去考虑，所以我们总
的原则是有限制和有限度地对公众开放。
Juanqinzhai in the
Qianlong Garden: The
Forbidden City
(Paperback)
by Nancy Berliner (Author)
Publication: December
2008
One of the five most
important interiors to
survive China's imperial
past, Juanqinzhai (Lodge
of Retirement), situated in
the exquisitely designed
Qianlong Garden, was all
but abandoned when the
last emperor left the
Forbidden City in 1924.
Built in 1771-76, the
Lodge was designed by
China's longest-reigning
emperor for his personal
use. Built when China was
the largest and most
prosperous nation in the
world, the interiors of
Juanqinzhai are the
epitome of Chinese
design and craftsmanship,
constructed with the finest
materials and artistry
available. In 2003,
Juanqinzhai, largely
derelict and in a state of
disrepair, became the
subject of an international
restoration project
organised by the World
Monuments Fund and the
Palace Museum. This
visually rich book
celebrates the completion
of the project in 2008,
bringing this spectacular
building into public light
for the first time.
About the Author
Nancy Berliner is Curator
of Chinese Art at the
Peabody Essex Museum
in Salem, Massachusetts,
and has been a
consultant to the World
Monuments Fund on the
interpretation of
Juanqinzhai.
Qianlong Garden: The
Forbidden City
(Paperback)
by Nancy Berliner (Author)
Publication: December
2008
One of the five most
important interiors to
survive China's imperial
past, Juanqinzhai (Lodge
of Retirement), situated in
the exquisitely designed
Qianlong Garden, was all
but abandoned when the
last emperor left the
Forbidden City in 1924.
Built in 1771-76, the
Lodge was designed by
China's longest-reigning
emperor for his personal
use. Built when China was
the largest and most
prosperous nation in the
world, the interiors of
Juanqinzhai are the
epitome of Chinese
design and craftsmanship,
constructed with the finest
materials and artistry
available. In 2003,
Juanqinzhai, largely
derelict and in a state of
disrepair, became the
subject of an international
restoration project
organised by the World
Monuments Fund and the
Palace Museum. This
visually rich book
celebrates the completion
of the project in 2008,
bringing this spectacular
building into public light
for the first time.
About the Author
Nancy Berliner is Curator
of Chinese Art at the
Peabody Essex Museum
in Salem, Massachusetts,
and has been a
consultant to the World
Monuments Fund on the
interpretation of
Juanqinzhai.