| Palace of Prolonging Happiness | |
| Native Name: | 延禧宫 |
| Native Name Lang: | zh |
| Former Names: | Palace of Longevity |
| Alternate Names: | Yanxi Palace |
| Building Type: | Palace |
| Location City: | Forbidden City, Beijing |
| Completion Date: | 1420 |
The Palace of Prolonging Happiness, also known as Yanxi Palace, is one of the Six Eastern Palaces in the inner court of the Forbidden City. It is situated behind the Hall for Ancestral Worship .[1]
Located in a remote area of the Forbidden City and described as one of its most "exotic" looking structures, this residence was built in 1420 as the "Palace of Longevity" .[2] [3] In 1535, it was renamed the "Palace of Prolonging Auspiciousness" by the Jiajing Emperor. It received its current name after being renovated in 1686, during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor.
The palace was destroyed by multiple fires between 1845 and 1855. Rebuilding work began in 1909, with a main hall being replaced by the "Water Hall", a new three-story Western-style structure surrounded by a moat that was supposed to be filled with spring water from Yuquan Mountain near Beijing. Empress Dowager Longyu inscribed the plaque for it, which read "Lingzhao Pavilion" (;); the building is more commonly known as the "Crystal Palace" . However, lack of funding and damage from a bombing raid in 1917 prevented the completion of the work. Today, only the iron cast and marble remain.
In 1931, three two-story warehouses were added to house the Palace Museum's artifacts. Since 2005, the warehouses have been used for the Ceramics Laboratory, the Research Centre for Ceramics, and the Research Centre for Traditional Calligraphy and Paintings.