Potala Palace
Location
No. 35, Beijing Middle Road, Chengguan District, Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region
Reasons to visit
The Potala Palace is located on the Marpori Mountain in the northwest of Lhasa, the capital of China's Tibet Autonomous Region. It is a palace-style building complex. It was originally built by the Tubo Dynasty King Songtsen Gampo to marry Princess Bhrikuti and Princess Wencheng.
Opening Hours
- 09:00-12:00, 15:30-16:30 (except holidays and major events)
The Potala Palace is located on the Marpori Mountain in the northwest of Lhasa, the capital of China's Tibet Autonomous Region. It is a palace-style building complex. It was originally built by the Tubo Dynasty King Songtsen Gampo to marry Princess Bhrikuti and Princess Wencheng. After being rebuilt in the 17th century, it became the winter palace of successive Dalai Lamas and the ruling center of Tibet's theocracy. In 1994, the Potala Palace was listed as a World Cultural Heritage. The main buildings of the Potala Palace are the White Palace and the Red Palace. The Potala Palace is known as the "Pearl on the Roof of the World". It is a symbol of Lhasa and even the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and it was once the political center of Tibet. The palace houses a very rich collection of cultural relics and handicrafts, and also treasures the unique cultural heritage of the snow-covered land. Built in the middle of the seventh century AD, the entire palace has a Tibetan style, is more than 200 meters high, and has 13 floors on the outside, but only 9 floors in reality. Because it was built on the mountainside, the large area of stone walls stand like a cut wall, making the building seem to be integrated with the hills, majestic. Why was the Potala Palace built? One theory is that it was due to development needs. In order to consolidate his regime, Songtsen Gampo moved the ruling center from Shannan Zetang to the Potala Palace. In order to defend against foreign invasions, he built the "Red Mountain Palace" on the Red Mountain in Lhasa, which is today's Potala Palace. Another theory is that Songtsen Gampo built this palace to marry Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty. This magnificent palace with a history of 1,300 years also infinitely extends the splendor of Tibetan culture. It is a real world heritage. It is a palace-style building complex that can be touched and deeply explored. It is undecorated, but it is truly an outstanding representative of Tibetan architectural art. Tibetans who are fortunate enough to enter the Potala Palace regard it as a reward and gift of life, and many tourists are no exception.
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