Ancient Palace Discovered in Beijing's Forbidden City

The Forbidden City in Beijing was the capital of Chinese emperors from the XVth century to the early twentieth century

This is the place where a team of archaeologists discovered the remains of a palace lasting since the Mongol domination, from thirteenth to fourteenth century, reports EFE this Friday.

The discovery offers important information on a little known subject such as Beijing during the Mongol domination, on the Yuan Dynasty. At the same time the study of the ruins could elucidate one of the biggest mysteries of this city: where was the Mongol khans Palace really situated.

The aria excavations began in 2014 and aimed to a better understanding of the complex area in which there once lived the emperors of Ming Dynasty and Qing Dysnasty. The Forbidden City remains one of the main tourist attractions of the capital of China, Beijing.

It was thought for a long time that the building of the palace was situated near the Forbidden City and was built between 1406 and 1420 but the recent discovery revealed that both palaces have exactly the same site.
Excavations in the past two years have led to the discovery of the Mongolian palace’s posterior structures, such as the ruins of a residence with a garden intended for the Queen Mother and a porcelain ware-store that had been broken or discarded in the Qing Dynasty. The Forbidden City, which comprises 980 buildings, listed since 1987 on the UNESCO World Heritage list, is presented as the world's largest concentration of old wooden structures.