Grand Audience Chamber The Grand Audience Chamber , also known as the Ceremonial Hall or the Temple throneroom , was part of the Great Temple on the jungle moon of Yavin 4 . Measuring approximately 200 square meters , the Grand Audience Chamber almost entirely occupied the fourth and topmost level of the Great Temple . Its walls were dark green blocks of stone , and this huge room was considered an example of classical beauty . The Grand Audience Chamber was originally built at the end of the Hyperspace War , by the Massassi warriors who accompanied Naga Sadow during his exile on the fourth moon of Yavin Prime . Along with the whole Great Temple , it was abandoned for millennia before being reinvested by the Alliance to Restore the Republic and the New Jedi Order . History . The Grand Audience Chamber was part the Great Temple , a structure erected on Yavin 4 by the Massassi who worshipped Naga Sadow , a Sith Lord in exile . The throneroom occupied the fourth and uppermost level of the pyramid , complete with skylights and raised platform . Roughly a thousand years later , when Exar Kun eliminated the Massassi by absorbing their life - force , the Temple and the Chamber went into disuse for thousands of years . During the Galactic Civil War in 0 BBY , it was used as a ceremonial hall by the Rebel Alliance garrison . The members of the Alliance didn ' t refurbish the room with new materials , as they did in other parts of the Temple . They merely cleaned weathered debris and uprooted overgrown weeds , committed to restore the Chamber to its former magnificence . In this very room , Princess Leia Organa presided over the Royal Award Ceremony , during which the Medal of Bravery was given to those who partook in the battle over the first Death Star . For the first time in millennia , that vast chamber was full , with hundreds of rebel troops and technicians gathered together to celebrate their major victory against the Galactic Empire . After the medal ceremony , a celebration was held in the Grand Audience Chamber , with toasts coming often and exhuberantly . During the Empire ' s invasion of Yavin , one of the minor battles that occurred on the moon within the six months after the destruction of the Death Star , General Jan Dodonna and several Rebel personnel were also trapped within the Grand Audience Chamber by stormtroopers , although they were rescued by rebel heroes Luke Skywalker and Wedge Antilles of Red Squadron . When Master Luke Skywalker established the Jedi Praxeum in 11 ABY , the Grand Audience Chamber was used as a teaching space for the Jedi cadets . Unlike with many other rooms , the New Jedi Order left the Audience Chamber mostly untouched , as it was deemed to beautiful to be rebuild . The Jedi would place rows of polished wooden benches and a small platform was positioned in front of the chamber for the speaker . Upon this , when Master Skywalker was in a coma because of Kyp Durron , who was under the influence of Exar Kun , he was put on a stone platform on the stage of the chamber . He looked as if dead , which caused his students to feel grief and dismay . But with their help and the spirit of Master Vodo - Siosk Baas , they were able to defeat Kun ' s wicked spirit with the Force . And Luke had awakened with his spirit back in his body . During Second Imperium / Shadow Academy assault on the Jedi Praxeum , Imperial Commander Orvak set up his detonators in the chamber but he was bitten by a crystal snake . Orvak woke up just in time to see what it was that caused his unconsciousness , and just before the detonators he set in the Grand Audience Chamber exploded . The explosion killed Orvak and destroyed much of the Chamber though it would be rebuilt . During the Yuuzhan Vong War , the Conclave on Yavin 4 was held here . Later , during the Yuuzhan Vong / Peace Brigade conquest of Yavin 4 , the Great Temple along with the Grand Audience Chamber was flattened by a Damutek . Layout . Measuring approximately thirteen by sixteen meters , the Grand Audience Chamber was accessed through a large wooden doorway carved with symbols that curved and twirled in a beautiful pattern . The Chamber itself was a huge echoing room — according to Jedi Lore Keeper Tionne Solusar , the acoustics of the Chamber were good for singing — the long sloped floor of which was paved with with rectangular slabs . The slanted outer walls came together above the floor to form the room ' s squared - off ceiling . Most of the flagstones were a dull grey , while shimmering stone lozenges ornamented the chamber with bright ochre , vermilion or dark green . The high roof was equipped with skylights open to the sun , and aligned with solstice and equinox . At the far end of an open aisle , there was a raised dais reached by a flight of stairs made of fourteen steps . The back wall boasted five large window - slits that insured an abundant supply of fresh air and natural light . Behind the dais , a small hidden stairway led to an observation platform at the roof of the Temple . When the young Anakin Solo began his apprenticeship , the stone walls were of a deep tan color , and they had worn smooth over the years . Electric blue blueleaf shrubs grew in the cracks throughout the stones and released a spicy perfume in the room . Behind the scenes . The Grand Audience Chamber first appeared during the triumphant end sequence of in 1977 . While most of the interior scenes of the movie were filmed at Elstree Studios , just outside of , the triumph ceremony required a stage far larger than anything Elstree could offer . Thus , the massive Stage H at Shepperton Studios was used to portray the Grand Audience Chamber . The Rebel Briefing Room and the monitoring of the attack on the Death Star scene were also shot at Shepperton . The filmmakers originally intend to use a matte painting to create the vast assembly present for the triumph ceremony . However , this proved too difficult , and the extras were filmed at the near end of the stage , then relocated into the middle and filmed again , and finally moved to the far end of the room and filmed one last time . During the filming of this final scene , the extras whispered insults and openly mocked Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford for starring in a movie that they believed would be a flop . The layout of the Chamber has been portrayed consistently throughout the Expanded Universe , with only minor differences . For example , in the 2003 video game " " , the stairs leading to the dais are made up of eight steps instead of fourteen . The back wall also has several rows of window slits on top of another instead of the usual single row . In case of inconsistencies , this present article follows the depiction of the movie , due to its absolute level of canon icity .