Daming Palace, China

The Tang Dynasty (618 – 907) was a golden age for China. During this period, it became the most powerful and prosperous country in the world as commerce, culture and military might flourished.

Daming Palace was a fitting monument to this prosperity. It was the major residence of emperors and the grandest, most significant palace complex in the Chang’an imperial city. The most impressive of all the buildings was Hanuyan Hall where important guests of the emperor were welcomed. But all that remains for today’s visitors to see are the rammed earth foundations, covered in concrete to protect them, giving no sense of history or wonder of this amazing site.

So bringing the palace to life and telling the stories of those who lived there is a real challenge. It’s one we were delighted to take up when invited by Heritage and Tourism International (HTI), a partnership between Oxford Archaeology and Team Tourism, to consult on the creative development of interpretive strategies and techniques for this huge site. HTI and Imagemakers looked at a number of immersive and engaging approaches, ranging from cutting edge technology to more traditional methods.