Gilded Bronze Vat - 12

In front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony hall, there are a couple of , which were used to hold water in case of fire. A fire could be lit under the vat in winter to stop the water from freezing. There are 308 vats in total in the Forbidden City. These water vats fall into different grades. Flanking the front of such important halls as Taihedian (Hall of Supreme Harmony), Baohedian (Hall of Preserving Harmony) and Qianqingmen (Gate of Heavenly Purity) are huge vats, each weighing 3,392 kilograms and measuring 1.6 metres in diameter. Near less important buildings, the vat weighs 2,166 kilograms and measures 1.28 metres. Still less important pavilions and towers have iron or bronze vats of yet smaller sizes.