Hall of Imperial Supremacy (Huangji dian)

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The Hall of Imperial Supremacy (Huangji dian) is the main hall in the area of Palace of Tranquil Longevity (Ningshou gong), which the Qianlong Emperor (r. 1736-1795) built for spending his years after his retirement. Now it was converted into the Treasure Gallery, exhibiting palace paraphernalia and the accessories of emperors and empresses. In the east corridor rooms to the south of the Gate of Concentrated Luck (Ningqi men), the Gallery of Stone Drums, the oldest surviving drum-shaped inscribed stones dating to the Qin dynasty, is installed.

  In 1796, the retired Qianlong Emperor held a grand banquet for a thousand elders in the Hall of Imperial Supremacy. The Empress Dowager Cixi celebrated her 70th birthday in the Summer Palace but returned to the Forbidden City to meet foreign diplomatic envoys here. After her death, her coffin was placed in this hall before it was interred in her tomb.