The ridge tile is a relic from Jianzhang Palace(建章宮) in Chang’an city in Han Dynasty (Western Han period). It is light grey in color, with ancient Chinese seal characters “Longevity to Serve the Heavens and to Shine as the Sun and the Moon” (延年益壽與天相侍日月同光) arranged in 2 horizontal lines with 6 words each, from right to left and from top to bottom. These words were common in ancient Chinese times to convey people’s wishes for good fortune, and indicate the desires of long life expectancy in society, from peasants to emperors, during the Han Dynasty. The ridge tile implicates the belief of longevity with its relationship with the Emperor Wu of Han and Jianzhang Palace.
Jianzhang Palace was built during the reign period of the Emperor Wu of Han. The Emperor Wu of Han was believed to be one of the greatest emperors in the Chinese history, with his more active, or even aggressive attitudes on the ruling of the empire. Moreover, he was the emperor with the longest reign in Han Dynasty, and he remained the record until the Kangxi Emperor in Qing Dynasty broke it. Differ from the previous emperors in Han Dynasty, the Emperor Wu
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Jianzhang Palace was known as “The Three Palace of Han” (漢三宮) with Weiyang Palace and Changle Palace, however, with the shortest existence time among the three palaces. It was constructed with similar design to Weiyang Palace. Jianzhang Palace was at first built for administrative use. Later, it was likely become a multi-functional palace with living, pleasure and worship purposes, which might fulfilled the desire of longevity of the Emperor Wu of Han. The Shenming Stand (神明台) in Jianzhang Palace was one of the examples to demonstrate the immortal desire and belief of the Emperor Wu of Han, which was the highest architecture in Jianzhang Palace. It was believed that human could meet deities on Shenming Stand as it was with a great