The Hall of Literary Brilliance (Wenhua Dian)

The Hall of Literary Brilliance (Wenhua Dian)

The Hall of Literary Brilliance, built in the early Ming Dynasty, was originally where the crown prince lived. Back then, it was roofed with green- glazed tiles, with a stone carving of three auspicious clouds in front of the door, a symbol of the crown prince's status in ancient times. In 1536, it began to serve as Emperor Jiajing's temporary dwelling palace, with its roof redone in yellow-glazed tiles, which have been retained to this day.

The Hall of Literary Brilliance was where the emperor studied the Four Books (namely, The Great Learning, The Doctrine of the Mean, The Analects of Confucius, and The Mencius) and Five Classics (The Book of Changes, The Book of Songs, The Book of Rites, The Book of History, and Spring and Autumn Annals) with knowledgeable ministers. This evolved into a routine during Emperor Zhengtong's reign of the Ming Dynasty. The emperor also daily met ministers here to discuss state affairs.

During the period of Emperor Qianlong, the Belvedere of Literary Profundity (Wenyuan ge) was built behind the Hall of Literary Brilliance to store the largest book series in ancient China — The Complete Library of the Four Branches of Literature.

A building functioning as a library, the Belvedere of Literary Profundity is covered with black tiles because the color black corresponds to water in the Five Elements. This design represents a prayer to protect the library from fires.

Water-related decorative elements such as seawater, lotus, and aquatic weeds can be seen everywhere here, and the stone-carved balustrades are adorned with patterns like tortoises, crabs, fish and shrimp. The Golden Water River also flows in front of the building. All of these convey the idea that water extinguishes fires.

The Hall of Literary Brilliance, a symbol of the imperial court's high esteem for cultural cultivation, manifests the Chinese tradition of attaching importance to classics and education.

文华殿

明初，文华殿落成，宫殿屋顶用绿色琉璃瓦，门前石雕用“三元纹”，即象征太子身份的三团祥云。嘉靖十五年（1536）改为皇帝便殿，覆黄瓦沿用至今。

文华殿是举行“经筵”的场所。经筵，是指皇帝与有学问的大臣共同研读四书五经，于明代正统年间形成规制。经筵以外，文华殿还举行日讲，君臣之间探讨治国理政之道。

乾隆年间，文华殿后建文渊阁，用于收藏中国古代最大的丛书《四库全书》。文渊阁作为藏书楼，覆黑瓦。黑色对应五行中的“水”，以期为藏书楼克火。因此，在文渊阁及附近区域，随处可见海水、荷花、水草等纹饰，石雕栏板上还有乌龟、螃蟹、鱼虾等，金水河也从阁前流过。凡此种种，皆取水能灭火之意。

文华殿是天子文经天地的象征，也昭示着中华文化重视经典、笃学不倦的历史传统。