In January 1925, the Committee for the Management of the Former Qing Imperial Household 清室善后委员会 inspected the Hall of Union 交泰殿, and registered a total of 58 pieces (sets) of cultural relics such as thrones, seals and treasures. Among them are 25 Imperial Seals1 of the Qing empire.
Twenty-Five Imperial Seals 二十五宝玺
Bronze, Jade, Glass, Silver, Wood | Qing dynasty (1644-1912) | The Palace Museum collection. 铜、玉、银、金、木 | 清（公元1644年-1912年） | 北京故宫博物院藏
The twenty five Imperial Seals are the twenty five official stamps determined by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty to exercise the supreme power of the state. They are kept in elaborate treasure caskets called Baolu 宝盝 inside the Hall of Union 交泰殿 in the Forbidden City, one seal in one casket. These twenty-five seals have been passed down to the last emperor Xuantong, and their quantity and function have not changed. 2
In the 11th year of Qianlong reign (1746), Emperor Qianlong based on “The Book of Changes – The Great Expansion” 《周易·大衍》that the heavenly numbers (odd numbers) add up to the number 25 (“天数二十有五”), so he set the number of seals as twenty-five, hoping that the Qing Dynasty could pass on to the twenty-fifth generation.3
Except for the jade seal of “The Emperor” 青玉交龙纽满文“皇帝之宝”, which is only in Manchu seal script, the rest of the imperial seals are bilingual in Manchu and Chinese.
In the 13th year of Qianlong, the Manchu seal method was created. In order to harmonise the typeprint of Manchu and Chinese characters on the imperial seals, Emperor Qianlong issued a special edict: except for the four seals “大清受命之宝”、“皇帝奉天之宝”、“大清嗣天子宝”、青玉“皇帝之宝” because they had been used before they defeated the Ming dynasty and changing them was “not easy”, the remaining twenty-one seals were recreated in the new methods.4
“Royal Catalog of Imperial Seals in Hall of Union” 《御制交泰殿宝谱铭》
Paper | Qing Qianlong reign (r. 1736-1795) | The Palace Museum collection. 纸质 | 清乾隆（公元1735年-1795年） | 北京故宫博物院藏5
For this purpose, Emperor Qianlong also made the “Royal Catalog of Imperial Seals in Hall of Union” that listed the inscription and purpose of the 25 imperial seals.6 Despite all those elaborate considerations, Qing dynasty did not last for 25 generations. The 12th and last emperor Xuantong 宣统 (commonly know as Puyi) abdicated in 1912, ending the last feudal empire of China.
The Use of Seals
Government seals are more than just decorative emblems; they are powerful symbols of authority, authenticity, and legitimacy. Seals have been used for thousands of years to ensure the authenticity of important documents.
In the Shang dynasty, important documents were transported in wooden containers capped with clay. In order to ensure that the documents were not tampered with in transport, a simple seal, likely with a clan symbol, was applied to the clay before it dried.
Later, with the emergence of paper documents, seals bearing more complex characters would proclaim the authenticity of a document. A result of this was that simply owning a seal would be a marker of one’s political authority.
As seals became part of the official apparatus of the state, esteemed individuals began to commission seals of a more fanciful nature. Auspicious sayings were engraved on seals so that, in more personal correspondence, the literati class could ‘authenticate’ their good wishes toward the recipient of a letter or poem.
Even today, seals form an important part of Chinese culture. All government institutions use seals to authorise their documents. In many cases, the presence of a seal is even more persuasive than a signature: Chinese citizens will often use a name seal to conduct business, using them to open bank accounts or sign contracts much in the same way that a Westerner would apply a signature.7
Hall of Union 交泰殿
The Hall of Union is square in shape with a pyramidal roof. Stored here are the 25 Imperial Seals of the Qing dynasty, as well as other ceremonial items, including the clocks that set the official time in the palace – first a water clock, later a mechanical clock 大自鸣钟 (above), both still displayed in the hall.8
Hall of Union photos from visit in Aug 2019, seals from 100th anniversary exhibition at the Palace Museum, taken Nov 2025.
About Chinese National Treasure Series
中華國寶系列 Chinese National Treasure series feature specific artefacts and relics from museums all around the world that are historically significant to be considered a National Treasure. The series covers the 5,000 years of Chinese civilisation from Neolithic periods before the Xia dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BC) to modern day.
Footnotes :
- 二十五方玉玺造型、材质多样，以玉刻交龙纽为多，其它有金质、银质，还有一方木玺。
（1）大清受命之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以章皇序之用”，白玉质，盘龙纽，汉篆文、满本字文，昭告天下天子登基用玺，也是大清承受天命的象征物。
（2）皇帝奉天之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以章奉若之用”，碧玉质，盘龙纽，汉篆文、满本字文。郊祀用玺，也是皇帝敬奉天道的象征物。
（3）大清嗣天子宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以章继绳之用”，金制，交龙纽，汉篆文、满本字文，册立太子用玺。
（4a）皇帝之宝（玉玺）：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以布诏敕之用”，青玉质，交龙纽，满篆文，清朝早期的皇帝日常用玺，乾隆以后鲜用。（**中国国家博物馆调拨）
（4b）皇帝之宝（木玺）：檀香木质，蹲龙纽，满汉篆文，《交泰殿宝谱》虽载其仅为“以肃法驾之用”的皇权象征物，但事实上绝大部分制诰诏敕均钤该宝，是所用最多应用范围最广的一方宝玺。
（5）天子之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以祀百神之用”，白玉质，交龙纽，祭祀用玺，用于祭祀神灵的祝文祭文。
（6）皇帝尊亲之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以荐徽号之用”，白玉质，交龙纽，为太后，太皇太后上徽号、尊谥则用之。
（7）皇帝亲亲之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以展宗盟之用”，白玉质，交龙纽，赏赐宗室、外藩王公则用之。
（8）皇帝行宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以颁锡赉之用”，碧玉质，交龙纽，赏赐慰劳功臣则用之。
（9）皇帝信宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以征戎武之用”，白玉质，交龙纽，征发编整军队则用之。
（10）天子行宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以册外蛮之用”，碧玉质，蹲龙纽，册封藩国外夷则用之。
（11）天子信宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以命殊方之用”，青玉质，交龙纽，汉篆文、满本字文，号令藩国外夷则用之。
（12）敬天勤民之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以饬勤吏之用”，白玉质，交龙纽，嘉赏降旨入朝外官则用之。
（13）制诰之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以谕臣僚之用”，青玉质，交龙纽，主要用于诰谕高级官员及其亲属的册书和诰书。
（14）敕命之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以钤诰敕之用”，碧玉质，蹲龙纽，主要用于诰谕低级官员及其亲属的敕书。
（15）垂训之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以扬国宪之用”，碧玉质，交龙纽，颁行法令或皇帝教论则用之。
（16）命德之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以奖忠良之用”，青玉质，交龙纽，奖励臣僚则用之。
（17）钦文之玺：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以重文教之用”，墨玉质，交龙纽，颁发文明教化论旨则用之，二十五宝中唯一一方以古名“玺”命名的宝玺。
（18）表章经史之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以崇古训之用”，碧玉质，交龙纽，表彰刊发钦定经史古籍则用之。
（19）巡狩天下之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以从省方之用”，青玉质，交龙纽，为皇帝巡视四方时所用的办公便印。
（20）讨罪安民之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以张戎伐之用”，青玉质，交龙纽，派遣军队出征则用之。
（21）制驭六师之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以整戎行之用”，青玉质，交龙纽，向军队下达命令则用之。
（22）敕正万邦之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以诰外国之用”，青玉质，交龙纽，回书外国或藩国外夷则用之。
（23）敕正万民之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以诰四方之用”，青玉质，盘龙纽，向全国臣民布告论旨处分则用之。
（24）广运之宝：《交泰殿宝谱》载“以谨封识之用”，墨玉质，交龙纽，钤于皇帝御笔宸翰之上。
https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-sg/清朝玉玺, accessed 21 Nov 2025 ↩︎ - 二十五宝玺为清代乾隆皇帝厘定的行使国家最高权力的二十五方御用国宝的总称。它们密藏于紫禁城交泰殿的宝盝中，一宝一盝。此二十五宝玺传至宣统未年，其数量和功用未曾变更。1925年1月，清室善后委员会对交泰殿进行点查，共计登记宝座、宝玺、宝谱等文物58件（套）。Museum information card, Nov 2025 ↩︎
- 乾隆十一年(1746)，乾隆帝根据《周易·大衍》“天数二十有五”的记载，希望清朝也能传至二十五世，因而钦定宝玺为二十五种。https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/501826316, accessed 21 Nov 2025 ↩︎
- 乾隆十一年厘定之御宝的宝文，除青玉“皇帝之宝”为满文篆书外，其余全部为满文本字和汉文篆书两种文字。乾隆十三年，创制满文篆法。为使御宝上的满汉文字书体协调，乾隆皇帝特颁旨：除“大清受命之宝”、“皇帝奉天之宝”、“大清嗣天子宝”、青玉“皇帝之宝”四宝因在清入关以前就已使用，“不宜轻易”外，余二十一宝一律改镌，将其中的满文本字全部改用篆书，这就是我们现在看到的二十五宝。https://www.dpm.org.cn/collection/seal/234692.html, accessed 21 Nov 2025 ↩︎
- ↩︎
- 时至今日，这二十五方玉玺依然藏于故宫博物院交泰殿内。乾隆皇帝为此还做了《御制交泰殿宝谱铭》。https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/501826316, accessed 21 Nov 2025, accessed 21 Nov 2025 ↩︎
- What Is The History And Usage Of Chinese Seals (印章/Yin Zhang/Yin Chang: History And Usage)? The Role Of Chinese Seals For Authorization And Display Of Privilege https://www.asianbrushpainter.com/blogs/kb/what-is-the-history-and-usage-of-chinese-seals, accessed 21 Nov 2025 ↩︎
- 内廷后三宫之一，位于乾清宫和坤宁宫之间，约为明嘉靖年间建，顺治十二年（1655年）、康熙八年（1669年）重修，嘉庆二年（1797年）乾清宫失火，殃及此殿，是年重建。
交泰殿平面为方形，深、广各3间，单檐四角攒尖顶，铜镀金宝顶，黄琉璃瓦，双昂五踩斗栱，梁枋饰龙凤和玺彩画。四面明间开门，三交六椀菱花，龙凤裙板隔扇门各4扇，南面次间为槛窗，其余三面次间均为墙。殿内顶部为盘龙衔珠藻井，地面铺墁金砖。明间设宝座，上悬康熙帝御书“无为”匾，宝座后有板屏一面，上书乾隆帝御制《交泰殿铭》。东次间设铜壶滴漏，乾隆年后不再使用。西次间设大自鸣钟，宫内时间以此为准。
交泰殿为皇后千秋节受庆贺礼的地方。清代，于此殿贮清二十五宝玺。每年正月，由钦天监选择吉日吉时，设案开封陈宝，皇帝来此拈香行礼。清世祖所立“内宫不许干预政事”的铁牌曾立于此殿。皇帝大婚时，皇后的册、宝安设殿内左右案上。每年春季祀先蚕，皇后先一日在此查阅采桑的用具。
现为宫廷生活原状陈列。
https://www.dpm.org.cn/explore/building/236467.html, accessed 21 Nov 2025 ↩︎
0 comments on “Treasures – Twenty-Five Imperial Seals (Qing Dynasty)”