This volume reports on the cognitive survey carried out in the Hall of Supreme Harmony of the Forbidden City in Beijing by the Directorate General for the Architectural and Landscape Heritage between November 2003 and April 2004. It aims at providing a thorough reading of geometries, matters and building features of the Taihe dian, through a reverse path to knowledge starting from the tangible document of the building. A scientific report rooted in a long tradition of cultural heritage management, which considers the divulgation of the outcomes of any research as an essential prerequisite for knowledge sharing.