IAPA PTY. LTD. won the international competition for the conceptual planning of the Daming Palace National Heritage Park in 2008. After completing the conceptual master plan, IAPA was also responsible for the detailed planning of the entire park and the individual design of the Xuan Zheng Hall and Zi Chen Hall. The Daming Palace National Heritage Park in Xi'an is a significant heritage conservation project identified by the International Council on Monuments and Sites, and is known as one of the two world-class heritage conservation projects in China, along with the Forbidden City in Beijing. It is an important part of the Silk Road's application for World Cultural Heritage status.
The Daming Palace of the Tang Dynasty was an important political and cultural center of Chang'an City during the Tang Dynasty, constructed in the eighth year of the Zhenguan era (634 AD) and took nearly 30 years to complete. Out of the 21 emperors of the Tang Dynasty, 17 reigned for a continuous period of 270 years. Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in Chinese history, renamed the Daming Palace to 'Penglai Palace' during her reign and governed from here. However, the subsequent Tang emperors still referred to it as the Daming Palace. In the first year of the Tianfu era (904 AD), Emperor Zhaozong moved the capital to Luoyang, and the Daming Palace was deliberately destroyed, leaving it in ruins.
The Daming Palace of the Tang Dynasty achieved great heights in overall layout, architectural technology, and art, and is the largest palace complex in Chinese history, known as the "pinnacle of Chinese palace architecture." The palace layout pioneered by the Tang Daming Palace laid the foundation for the palace systems in China and East Asia, serving as a model for Chinese palace architecture after the Tang Dynasty and significantly influencing the palace architecture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties in China, as well as in Japan and Korea in East Asia.
Master planning level: Fully respect history and maximize the continuation of the original functions and traffic patterns;
Spatial structure level: The grand axis landscape starts from the Danfeng Gate in the south, passing through the Imperial Way, Hanyuan Hall, Xuan Zheng Hall, Zi Chen Hall, Taiye Pool Penglai Island, Xuanwu Gate to Chongxuan Gate, running through the north and south of the Daming Palace, reflecting the grand momentum of the Daming Palace National Park and showing the glorious history of the Daming Palace;
Cultural heritage protection level: From macro to micro, it reflects the theme of cultural heritage protection and display. The protective green space of the circle protects the park from urban construction interference, and within the park, it avoids constructive damage to the cultural relics as much as possible, and has designated a special demonstration protection display area;
Cultural expression level: It highlights the characteristics of Tang Dynasty culture. The park is filled with the atmosphere of politics, culture, religion, art, and sports of the Tang Dynasty, which is not only a living history textbook but also a leisure place for sightseeing and tourism.
The Daming Palace National Heritage Park was opened to the public on October 1, 2010. The completion of the Daming Palace National Heritage Park allows us to better understand the architectural forms and cultural connotations of the Tang Dynasty; it promotes better protection of many cultural relics and historical sites in Xi'an, and successfully applies for World Cultural Heritage status. At the same time, the renovation project improves the living environment of urban villages and shantytowns around the project, making it the Central Park of Xi'an, and driving the urban development of Xi'an. It becomes the ecological foundation and the most important cultural symbol for the future urban development of Xi'an, and becomes a shining business card of the ancient capital of world civilization, further enhancing the urban characteristics of Xi'an.
