Visit Beijing 北京 Blog

Ni hao! The Jingshan Park In Beijing 2009 Zai jian! Peter

Ni hao! As I told you before I want to give you the real pearls of Beijing. One at a time! Here I will give one more interesting sight. Jingshan Hill (Chinese: 景山 is an artificial hill in Beijing, China. It is located in Xicheng District, immediately north of the Forbidden City on the central axis of Beijing. Originally an imperial garden, it is now a public park, known as Jingshan Park (景山公园). The 45.7-metre high artificial hill was constructed in the Yongle era of the Ming Dynasty entirely from the soil excavated in forming the moats of the Imperial Palace and nearby canals. It is especially impressive when one considers that all of this material was moved only by manual labor and animal power. According to the dictates of Feng Shui, it is favorable to site a residence to the south of a nearby hill (and it is also practical, gaining protection from chilly northern winds). The imperial palaces in both of the other capitals of the Ming Dynasty were situated to the south of a hill. ...