The Inner Golden River

An intimate, architectural look at the Forbidden City's Inner Golden River, featuring a personal travel narrative and exclusive fine art print downloads.

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Helena C.

6/21/20262 min read

Fine art architectural photograph of the Inner Golden River in the Forbidden City, Beijing. Captured

"The Forbidden City is located at the core of Beijing's central axis. It is one of the largest and best preserved ancient wooden structures in the world. As a world cultural heritage site, the Forbidden City has become a unique symbol of Chinese civilization, and one of the must-see attractions for foreigners coming to Beijing." - The Forbidden City, https://english.beijing.gov.cn/

Forbidden City , March 2018, Spring

Walking around the Forbidden City, the scale was so massive that we didn't know where to look. Our tour guide's stories—no matter how inspiring or tragic—simply could not pull our thoughts away from what we were witnessing firsthand.

The grandiose scale of the entire development is unfathomable. While it understandably took centuries for the complex to evolve into what it is today, the final structure feels straight out of a fantasy novel. Every stone, every color, and every minute detail was pristine. It was as if failing to impress whoever ordered its construction was a punishable crime.

This curving body of water before us, the Inner Golden River, serves as a grand, man-made drainage system that weaves across the complex while also providing vital water. Historically, during the harsh winters, palace maids would harvest large ice blocks from its frozen surface to stock the royal ice houses for the summer months.

The Inner Golden River draws its water from the distant Jade Spring Hill—a place true to its name, renowned for its beautiful, rich jade color. Because of its source, the river itself looks like liquid jade, crawling gracefully through the imperial courtyard.

In this photo, I wanted to capture the exact vision the scene gave me: the river resembling a jade serpent, gracefully guarding the palace. The rich, vibrant colors of the buildings allow them to completely pop, making the palace look entirely separated from both the sky above and the ground beneath.

Witnessing such immense prestige left me wondering: what was life truly like for the commoners living just outside the Forbidden City back in those days? If everything within these walls was impressive, grand, and beautiful in every sense of the word, did any of that luxury trickle down to the common populace? Or was everyone else, apart from the chosen few who lived inside these walls, living in a completely opposite state of reality?

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