Corner Tower Of The Forbidden City Stock Photography

This was shot in Beijing on January 4, 2010. Each corner of the Forbidden City (of the former Imperial Palace）in Beijing has a unique corner tower. Below is seen the moat surrounding the palace which is 3,800 metres long and 52 metres wide. Intruders were discouraged by guards in watchtowers with bow and arrows. Legend has it that the emperor gave craftsmen only nine days to design the corner towers. With still no ideas after eight days, the craftsmen were sitting in a teahouse hoping for an idea. An old peddler selling a cricket cage approached them and was quickly sent away. But he smiled and said, Look closely, this is no ordinary cricket cage. In fact it was finely crafted and had 9 beams, 18 columns and 72 ridges. It was taken as the model for the towers. The peddler was actually master craftsman Lu Ban who became an immortal.