Wenyuan Pavilion

　　The Wenyuan Pavilion, a Qing imperial library, was completed in the 41st year of Qianlong’s reign (1776). In the 38th year of Qianlong’s reign (1773), the emperor issued an edict to establish the “Siku Quanshu Office” for compiling the Siku Quanshu (Complete Library in Four Branches of Literature). In the 39th year, he decreed the construction of a library building, ordering it to be built behind the Wenhua Hall in a suitable location, creating the Wenyuan Pavilion specifically to house the Siku Quanshu.

　　The Wenyuan Pavilion faces south and is modeled after the Tianyi Pavilion of the Fan family in Ningbo, Zhejiang. Its gable walls are built of blue bricks up to the roof, presenting a simple and elegant look. It features a black-glazed tile roof with green-glazed tile trimming, symbolizing the element of water controlling fire to protect the library.

　　The front porch is fitted with meander-pattern railings, the eaves are adorned with inverted-hanging aprons, and the green-painted columns are complemented by fresh and charming Suzhou-style paintings, giving it a more garden-like architectural style.

　　A square pond was dug in front of the pavilion, with water channeled into it. A stone bridge spans the pond, and both the bridge and the surrounding railings of the pond are carved with patterns of aquatic animals, delicate and exquisite. Behind the pavilion, lake stones are piled to form a hill resembling a screen, planted with pines and cypresses that, over more than two hundred years, have grown lush and sturdy. On the east side of the pavilion stands a stele pavilion with a helmet-shaped roof and yellow-glazed tiles, featuring a unique design. Inside the pavilion stands a stone stele; the front is inscribed with the “Wenyuan Pavilion Record” written by Emperor Qianlong, and the back with an imperial poem composed for banquets held at the pavilion.

　　In the 47th year (1782), when the compilation of the Siku Quanshu was completed, Emperor Qianlong held a banquet in the Wenyuan Pavilion to reward officials of all ranks who had participated in the project, marking an unprecedentedly grand occasion.

　　The Siku Quanshu, along with the Imperially Commissioned Gujin Tushu Jicheng (Complete Collection of Illustrations and Writings from the Earliest to Current Times), was stored in the Wenyuan Pavilion and arranged on shelves according to the four traditional categories: Classics, History, Philosophy, and Literature. The 22 shelves of Classics, which include Confucian scriptures, were placed on the first floor along with the Siku Quanshu Zongmu Kaoyi (General Catalogue and Examination of the Siku Quanshu) and the Gujin Tushu Jicheng, with the emperor’s throne set up in the center as the venue for imperial lectures. The middle three rooms of the second floor connected to the first floor, surrounded by flooring, housed 33 shelves of Historical texts. The second floor served as a dimly lit storage level, suitable only for storing books and not conducive for reading. The third floor, except for the western room which was a staircase, connected the other five rooms, with shelves spaced between the front and rear pillars in each room—spacious and bright.

　　Shelves holding 22 shelves of Texts on Miscellaneous Subjects and 28 shelves of Literary Works were located here, with the central room furnished with an imperial couch for the emperor to visit and read at any time. Qing court regulations stipulated that among the ministers and officials, those who were fond of ancient books and diligent in their studies could, upon permission, enter the pavilion to read but were forbidden from damaging the books or taking them out.

　　After the completion of the Siku Quanshu, four official copies were transcribed. In addition to one copy stored in the Wenyuan Pavilion, the other three were respectively housed in the Wenyuan, Wenshen, and Wensu Pavilions. These four pavilions are known as the “Northern Four Pavilions.” Later, three more copies were transcribed and stored in the Wenzong, Wenhui, and Wenlan Pavilions, known as the “Southern Three Pavilions.”

　　Aisin-Gioro Hongli (1711–1799)　　Emperor Qianlong, Aisin-Gioro Hongli (September 25, 1711 – February 7, 1799), was the sixth emperor of the Qing dynasty. He reigned for sixty years and actually governed for sixty-three years and four months, making him the longest-lived emperor in Chinese history and also the one who held real power for the longest period. Alongside his father Yongzheng and grandfather Kangxi, Qianlong ushered in the “Prosperous Era of Kangxi and Qianlong.” During his reign, he consolidated and developed a unified multi-ethnic state, suppressed the Dzungar and Jungar rebellions, eliminated the Dzungar Khanate, stabilized Tibet, pacified the Jinchuan rebellions, reformed the bureaucracy, emphasized agriculture, developed water conservancy, promoted Sinology, established the Ili General to govern Xinjiang, and more. However, in the later years of his reign...  Details+

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