Posted 2016/11/24
In the courtyards of palaces and imperial gardens water vats are seen standing not far from the main buildings. as it name suggests during their time they were filled with water against the emergency of a fire. In winter they were covered and wrapped around with quilts and, when necessary, heated from below with charcoal to prevent the water from freezing. There were in the old days 308 such vats in the Forbidden City of Beijing however nowadays the reversation is only a few more than 200 .
The water vats were not only fire-fighting installations but part of the adornments that made up imperial magnificence. In the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) they were mostly made of iron or bronze, but they became much more elaborate and became more fined and elegant in the Qing (1644-I911), being of gold-plated brass and adorned with rings and side knobs in the form of animal heads.
These water vats fall into different grades. Flanking the front of such important halls as Taihedian (Hall of Supreme Harmony), Baohedian (Hall of Preserving Harmony) and Qianqingmen (Gate of Heavenly Purity) are huge vats, each weighing 3,392 kilograms and measuring 1.6 metres in diameter. Near less important buildings, the vat weighs 2,166 kilograms and measures 1.28 metres. Still less important pavilions and towers have iron or bronze vats of yet smaller sizes.
