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Forbidden City - Nine Dragon Screen Outside the Gate of Imperial Supremacy you will find a Nine Dragon Screen. It is 3.5 meters high and 29.4 meters long. Built in 1773 under the emperor Qian Long, it is the biggest of three in China. (The other two are in Shan Xi province and Bei Hai Park.) The Nine Dragon Screen is erected on a marble foundation. The surface of the screen is laid with a total of 270 colored, glazed tiles in the design of 9 dragons, mountains, clouds and the sea. It was meant to ward off evil spirits. The Chinese regard 9 as the largest numeral (and the same pronunciation as "forever") and the dragon as an auspicious beast.
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