members of the royal family were allowed to wear it and use it in their architecture.
the forbidden city is rectangular in shape. it is meters long from north to south and meter wide from east west. it has , rooms under a total roof area , square meters .a -meter-wide-moat encircles a .-meter—high wall which encloses the complex. octagon —shaped turrets rest on the four corners of the wall. there are four entrances into the city: the meridian gate to the south, the shenwu gate(gate of military prowess) to the north, and the xihua gate(gate of military prowess) to the north, and the xihua gate(western flowery gate )to the west ,the donghua (eastern flowery gate) to the east.