A royal banquet in Wanshuyuan

Chengde, which used to be the capital city of former Jehol, or Rehe, is a city of today’s Hebei Province.

It is best known for its mountain resort site, host to a large complex of imperial gardens and palaces used by the emperors of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) as a summer residence.

Founded in 1703, the imperial resort took 89 years to complete.

Covering an area of 5.64 million square meters, the complex is the largest existing imperial palace-garden in China and is listed by UNESCO as one of the World Heritage Sites.

Emperor Kangxi (1654-1722) and Qianlong (1711-99) both stayed at the resort for several months a year here to escape the summer heat, while both Emperor Jiaqing (1760-1820) and Xianfeng (1831-61) died there.

Emphasizing the profound harmony between man and nature, the Chengde Mountain Resort is a masterpiece of traditional Chinese architecture and gardens. It is famous for 72 scenic spots, which were named by Emperor Kangxi and Qianlong.

The complex consists of four sections, namely a palace area, lake area, plain area and mountain area. In the plain area, which covers 607,000 square meters, a forest named Wanshuyuan is situated.

Beyond the landscape, the woodland, located in the northeast of the plain area, is one of the significant political hubs at the Chengde Mountain Resort.

It is said there were 28 Mongolian yurts in Wanshuyuan. The largest one, which had a diameter of 24 meters, was a temporary palace for emperors. Here they often met noblemen of ethnic minorities, religious leaders and diplomatic envoys in the area.

In 1754, Emperor Qianlong gave a banquet for three leaders of the Dorbet Mongols’ tribe in Wanshuyuan.

The tribe once lived along the Irtysh River, which rises from the glaciers on the southwestern slopes of the Altay Mountains in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in northwest China.

In the winter of 1753, the leaders led more than 3,000 households to move from their hometown to Uliastai, which was a military garrison of the Qing government then. Their allegiance contributed to national unity.

Tourists can get a glimpse of the grand banquet that took place in Wanshuyuan more than 200 years ago through a painting.

The artwork was created by an Italian painter named Giuseppe Castiglione, widely known as Lang Shining in China.

Born in Milan in 1688, Castiglione came to China as a missionary in 1715. He served as an imperial artist for Emperor Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong.

Castiglione combined Western techniques of painting and Chinese brushwork. He emphasized on light and shade, perspective, color and realism.

His large handscroll, 4 meters wide and 8 meters long, was commissioned by Emperor Qianlong. Castiglione spent one year completing the work.

In the lower left corner of the painting, Emperor Qianlong sits on a bunian, or sedan, which is carried by 16 eunuchs wearing red robes. Over his head, there is a yellow imperial canopy, which is called huangluo sangai in Chinese.

Looking upward, there are a group of people preparing food near a tree with turquoise leaves.

In the middle part of the handscroll, the officials wearing blue and dark blue court robes, are adorned with rank patches, kneel on the ground.

Behind the officials are people from the Dorbet Mongols’ tribe. Wearing robes of various colors, some of them chat with others.

Paying their reverence to Emperor Qianlong, lamas in a line also kneel on the ground.

An imperial band playing musical instruments stands on both sides of the largest yurt where an exquisite carpet is placed.

Piles of fabric, porcelains, jadewares and gold and silverware are on the tables to the right side of the painting. The treasures were given by Emperor Qianlong to the leaders of Dorbet Mongols tribe.

The tower in the upper right corner is called the Yongyousi pagoda, which was built in 1752.

The red wooden frame in the middle implies that the banquet also serves an acrobatic show.

Featuring around 400 figures, the painting recreates the lively scene of a banquet.

It is said that the banquet lasted for 10 days. What’s more, Emperor Qianlong also invited guests to participate in various activities, such as hunting, horse riding and wrestling.

Jean Denis Attiret (1702-68), a French Jesuit painter and missionary, and Jgnatius Sickeltart (1708-80), a painter and missionary from Bohemia, also contributed to the artwork.

Castiglione was not only skilled in painting but also in architecture. He was in charge of designing the Western-style buildings in the Old Summer Palace in Beijing.

The banquet painting can be seen in the Palace Museum in Beijing.