“Outline of General Plan for the Protection of the Palace Museum: 2005-2025” (2004)
As the largest and most intact ancient architecture complex in the world, the Palace Museum is the most important ancient architecture complex in China and is the only ancient palace preserved until today in the history of China. It is among the first group of “historical and cultural heritage sites placed under special state protection” proclaimed by the State Council in 1961. In 1987 it was put into the list of World Heritage of UNESCO.
This project is to work out an outline of the plan for the protection of the particular historical and cultural relics, with the aim of settling the major problems in the protection and utilization of the Palace Museum. The theoretical innovation of this project lies in the analysis of ancient architecture complex relics and the study on the appraisal and measures of protection, etc.
For the first time the concepts --- “authenticity”, “intactness” and “continuity” – were introduced into the historical and cultural relics appraisal system. The criteria of the three qualities were quantified, according to the characteristics of protection of ancient Chinese architecture.
The idea of “integrated protection” is strengthened and deepened through the classification of relics and analysis of structure.
Through distinguishing architecture of cultural relics from architecture of non-cultural relics, classification of architecture of cultural relics, and functional division according to different subjects, this outline deepened the exploration on the strategies of protection and exhibition. It is the first general outline of protection plan guided by the ideas of cultural relics protection.
The value of this project lies in the innovation in the planning of ancient architecture complex protection and it sets a good example for future projects.
This project was awarded first prize in plan designing in China Architecture Design & Research Group in 2005 and was one of the “Ten Best Designs of Cultural Relics Protection Project in China” in 2006.