Potala Palace

The spectacular Potala Palace perched upon on the Red Hill of Lhasa, 117 meters in height and 360 meters in width, occupying an area of more than 130, 000 square meters (about 32 acres). It was originally built by King Songtsen Gampo in 637, who married Princess Wencheng of Tang Dynasty and decided "to build a city to show the glory". Suffering ruin, it was rebuilt, extended and renovated, then remains what it is today.

The grand Potala Palace mainly consisted of two parts: the White Palace and the Red Palace. White Palace with seven floors, severed as the winter palace of Dala Lama. The wall of the palace was painted to white, symbolizing peace and quiet. The largest hall in White Palace is the Great East Hall on the fourth floor, covering 717 square meters, once the site for holding momentous religious and political events. The living quarters and offices of regents are on the fifth and sixth floors and while the top floor consists of the East Chamber of Sunshine and the West Chamber of Sunshine. The Red Palace locates in the middle of the Porala Palace. The wall of the palace was painted to red, conveying stateliness and power. The most attractive treasure in the Red Palace is the religious status, gorgeous stupas and precious culture relics. The largest hall of Potala Palace is the Great West Hall, which is in the middle of Red Palace, occupying an area of 725 square meters. There are many fine murals on inner walls described the glory and power of the Fifth Dalai Lama, and the corridor upstairs is also painted by many religious murals.


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