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Hall of Central Harmony

The Hall of Central Harmony (Zhonghe Dian) is the smallest hall among the three main halls in the Outer Court. This pavilion-style hall used to be the place for the emperor to do preparations for ceremonies. When there was a ceremony in the Hall of the Supreme Harmony, the emperor had a short rest and waited here. Every year, emperors did customary sacrificial rituals at altars; the emperor read the elegiac address one day ahead at this hall. In the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the genealogical records of the royal family were edited every ten years. After a new genealogy was ready, it should be submitted to the emperor for an approval on the rite held in the Hall of Central Harmony.




Inside the hall is a throne with two golden beasts on each side. The beast is named as Luduan and has four legs and only one horn. It doesn't really exist, but is a kind of mythical animal in the people's imagination. This animal is said to run 9,000 kilometers (5,592 miles) a day, speak many languages and to foretell the future. It was placed beside the throne to indicate the emperor is brilliant and provident. Two bronze stoves on the floor were used for heating on cold days. Also displayed are two emperor's sedan chairs, which were the vehicles for the emperor to go around in the palace. At the imperial time, different kinds of sedan chair were used by the emperor on different occasions; the sedan chairs displayed here are one version of them.