Asia · China · Tibet
Potala Palace
from 1645BaroqueUNESCO World Heritage
The story
History of Potala Palace
The Dalai Lamas' thirteen-storey palace on Marpo Ri, with more than a thousand rooms of chapels and murals climbing the Red Hill.
China · Tibet · Tibetan
- Built
- from 1645
- Era
- Baroque
- Style
- Tibetan
- Country
- China
- Region
- Tibet
- UNESCO
- World Heritage Site
- Coordinates
- 29.658, 91.117
In depth
The fuller history
The lower white frontage on the south side of the palace was used to hoist two gigantic thangkas joined representing the figures of Tara and Sakyamuni during the Sertreng Festival on the 30th day of the second Tibetan month. Amongst at least one group of Tibetans c. 1950 the "Potala" is known colloquially as "Peak Potala" (Tse Potala), or most commonly as "the Peak".
Key dates
- 600The number of visitors to the palace was restricted to 1,600 a day, with opening hours reduced to six hours daily to avoid over-crowding from 1 May 2003.
- 700Built in the dzong style, at an altitude of about 3,700 metres (12,100 ft) on Marpo Ri in the center of the Lhasa Valley, the palace measures 400 metres (1,300 ft) east–west and 350 metres (1,150 ft) north–south.
- 1690The Potrang Marpo ('Red Palace') was added between 1690 and 1694.
- 1959The palace was damaged during the Tibetan uprising against the Chinese in 1959, when Chinese shells were launched into the palace's windows.
- 1989The palace has also received restoration works between 1989 and 1994, costing RMB55 million (US$6.875 million).
- 2006Visits to the structure's roof were banned after restoration efforts were completed in 2006 to avoid further structural damage.
Historical summary drawn from Wikipedia. Read the full article.
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