1. Introduction to Huizhou Architecture Essay 200
On the second stop of the National Day holiday, we went to many places in the ancient city of Huizhou, including Huizhou Fuya, Huiyuan, and Tao Xingzhi Memorial Hall, Xu Guo Stone Square, Huizhou Family, Archway Group, Baojia Garden, Tunxi Old Street, etc.
The characteristics of Huizhou architecture of Huizhou culture are: white walls, black tiles and horse head walls. While taking a boat trip on the Xin'an River, the white houses among the mountains and rivers looked like landscape paintings.
If we want to talk about the history of Huizhou culture, it must be the archway. Here, there were 200 archways in ancient times, and there are still 80 preserved today. In ancient times, archways were divided into four levels: imperial, enrong, imperial, and recommended. The most famous one is Xu Guo Shi Fang, which is of Enrong level. It is the only octagonal archway in the country and is known as the "Arch of Triumph" in the East. In the archway group in Tangyue Village, whether counting from the beginning or the end, it is in accordance with the rules of loyalty, filial piety and justice. There is one for recommendation, one for grace, four for imperial edict, and one for imperial control. It can be seen that the wisdom of the ancients was extraordinary.
I learned a lot from this trip and was very happy! 2. What are the characteristics of Huizhou architecture?
What are the characteristics of Huizhou architecture and residential buildings? In the end of my life, I dreamed of going to Huizhou five times.
In beautiful Huizhou, unique Hui-style houses are dotted among the green mountains and clear waters. Mysterious from a distance, elegant up close.
So, what are the characteristics of Huizhou architectural houses compared with other houses? ① It has black tiles, white walls, and horse head walls as its phenotypic characteristics. ② Use brick carvings, wood carvings, and stone carvings as decorative features.
③Tall houses, deep wells, and halls are the characteristics of homes. To sum up, from the perspective of aesthetic connotation, there are roughly the following points: First, the overall beauty of harmony, smoothness, and unified planning.
This is closely related to the social background and regional environment of Huizhou at that time: because Huizhou is the birthplace of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, the theoretical basis of the feudal patriarchal system, the patriarchal system is more strict and complete than elsewhere. In order to maintain the purity of bloodline and clan cohesion and prevent foreign invasion, Huizhou people live together in groups.
At that time, Huizhou had become the national Feng Shui cultural center. Officials, merchants, and people worshiped the feudal Feng Shui culture and believed in it. They believed that the moral connotation of the terrain outline outlined by the group layout of villages and towns directly reflected a clan. The "cultural" quality is related to the honor and disgrace of the clan. The unified planning of clan buildings is a popular choice.
Although the group layout of Huizhou architecture is a product of the constraints of feudal clan power and has a strong color of feudal superstition, its aesthetic effect is extremely wonderful and eye-opening. Most of the ancient villages in Huizhou are decorated with black tiles and white walls, and the houses with cornices and corners are scattered at different heights according to the mountainous terrain. They are stacked in an orderly manner and are spectacular.
The well-known Ziyuan Villa - various buildings are carefully planned and arranged in an orderly manner. It makes the tourists who stop there feel refreshed and awe-struck.
The second is the natural beauty surrounded by mountains and rivers. Huizhou's terrain is complex and varied, with mountains and rivers crisscrossing the territory. The mild subtropical climate makes the area lush with mountains, forests and lush greenery.
Living in a unique humanistic environment where "Neo-Confucian articles are surrounded by secluded mountains and rivers", Huizhou people have profound cultural accomplishments and are best at grasping the landscape to write articles when conceiving blueprints for villages and towns. It shows that the mountains are the skeleton of the stream, the stream is the blood of the village, and the buildings have become "cells" attached to the blood - the stream and its tributaries.
Huizhou architectural groups pay more attention to the surrounding environment when laying out their buildings. They refer to the mountainous terrain and water vegetation, either close to mountains and across rivers, or lying on mountains and rivers. They strive to integrate artificial buildings and natural landscapes to create a quiet home environment. It is elegant and picturesque, maintaining the natural harmony between man and nature. Under the guidance of this architectural thought, villages and towns with the style of "houses in peach gardens" can be seen everywhere in Huizhou.
They are either spread out on the banks of the sparkling river, or dormant in the corners of mountains covered by clouds and fog. They have an elegant environment, fresh air, and colorful views. A typical example is Shiwukeng Village, Wangcun Town, Xiuning County, where there are many peaks and beautiful forest ravines. The houses are arranged in a ladder style, and are clustered in the embrace of green firs, green bamboos and Liulan Waterfall. They are shadowy and misty. It's like a fairyland on earth.
The third is the beauty of elegance, simplicity and simplicity. For a long time, due to the topography of Huizhou, "the harvest produced by hard work is not enough to provide food", and people's livelihood has been difficult.
Huizhou people living in such a difficult environment are well aware of the hardships of raising a family and starting a business, and have developed a good style of frugality, food and clothing, and housekeeping. They have written it into the family rules and family mottos as a required textbook for family tradition education. Passed down from generation to generation. Therefore, even if the business is successful, wealthy businessmen and wealthy businessmen do not take pride in luxury and advocate frugality.
When building a house, it is often simple and simple, using local materials. Pursue a simple, natural, elegant and simple aesthetic feeling on the basis of solidity, practicality, and beauty.
Because of this, it is not difficult to understand that there are few magnificent mansions in Huizhou. Built with locally abundant clay, lime, Yixian bluestone, and metasequoia as main materials, the Hui-style houses are exquisitely conceived, unique in shape, strong and beautiful.
Looking from a distance, the stark contrast of black tiles and white walls, coupled with the colorful mottled bluestone door (window) covers and delicate and concise ink paintings, makes it look more simple and elegant, with endless charm and lightness. The simplicity is on full display. The aesthetics of Huizhou folk houses are as follows.
So, from the perspective of craftsmanship characteristics, what are the characteristics of Huizhou architectural residences? Huizhou ancient architecture uses bricks, wood, and stone as raw materials, and mainly uses wooden frames. The beam frames are mostly made of large materials and pay attention to decoration.
The middle part of the beam is slightly arched, so it is commonly known as the "Winter Melon Beam" among the people. The two ends are carved with oblate (Ming Dynasty) or round (Qing Dynasty) patterns, and the middle section is often carved with various patterns. The whole body looks grand, gorgeous and magnificent. The material used for the pillars is also quite thick, with the upper part slightly thinner.
Ming Dynasty columns were usually fusiform. Most of the beam supports, claw pillars, fork hands, Baquan, Quetai (Dingtou arch in the Ming Dynasty), diagonal braces, etc. are carved with patterns and moldings.
The ingenious combination and decoration of beam components blend craft technology and artistic techniques, achieving a perfect match. The beam frame is generally painted with tung oil instead of colored paint, which makes it look particularly simple and elegant.
Wall corners, patios, railings, screen walls, leaky windows, etc. are made of bluestone, red sandstone or granite cut into stone strips and slabs, and the natural texture of the stone itself is often used to form patterns. The walls are basically built with small green bricks up to the horse head wall.
Huizhou architecture also widely uses bricks, wood, and stone carvings, showing a superb level of decorative art. Brick carvings are mostly inlaid on door covers, window lintels, and screen walls. Large pieces of green bricks are carved with vivid and lifelike figures, insects, fish, flowers and birds, eight treasures, ancient and geometric patterns, which are highly decorative.
Wood carvings play an important role in the carvings and decorations of ancient houses, which are reflected in the line-engraved patterns on the moon beams, the lotus piers on the flat trays, screen door partitions, window sash and hanging panels under the windows, and floor arches. Railings and pillar heads around the patio. The content is extensive, including many figures, landscapes, flowers, plants, birds and animals, eight treasures and ancient books.
There are many themes, including traditional operas, folk tales, myths and legends, and life scenes such as fishing, woodcutting, farming, reading, banquets, drinking tea, traveling, music and dancing. There are various techniques, including line carving, bas-relief, high-relief, openwork, round carving and hollow carving.
The content and techniques of expression vary from different building parts. These wood carvings are not decorated with paint, but the high-quality wood color and natural texture make the details of the carvings more vivid.
Stone carvings are mainly displayed in ancestral halls, temples, archways, towers, bridges and courtyards, doorways, railings, pools, flower beds, leaky windows, screen walls, column bases, drum stones, stone lions, etc. The contents are mostly auspicious dragons, cranes, tigers, lions, elephants, unicorns, auspicious clouds, eight treasures, Bogu, landscapes, character stories, etc. They mainly use relief, openwork, round carving and other techniques, which are simple and elegant. 3. How to describe Huizhou architecture
1. Huizhou architecture is one of the most important schools of ancient Chinese architecture.
2. In fact, Hui-style architecture does not refer to the architecture of Anhui, but refers to the architecture that is mainly popular in the Xin'an River Basin in the upper reaches of the Qiantang River in one prefecture and six counties in the Huizhou region, as well as in Chun'an, Jiande and other places. Including Wuzhou and Quzhou in western Zhejiang and Fuliang and Dexing in Jiangxi in the pan-Huizhou region.
3. Historically, most Huizhou buildings were originally built in Wuzhou (now Jinhua, Zhejiang), mainly by craftsmen from Dongyang, Zhejiang.
4. Huizhou architecture combines the aura of Huizhou’s mountains and rivers, blends the essence of customs and culture, has a unique style, rigorous structure, and exquisite carvings, whether it is village and town planning concepts, plane and space processing, or architectural sculpture art. The comprehensive use of them, etc., fully reflects the distinctive local characteristics.
5. The overall layout of Huizhou architecture is generally based on the mountains and terrain, with exquisite conception and naturalness.
6. The layout of Huizhou architecture is flexible in scale and endlessly changeable.
7. Huizhou architecture pays attention to rich shapes in terms of shape, spatial structure and space utilization, with horse head walls and small green tiles being the most distinctive.
8. Huizhou architecture makes comprehensive use of architectural sculpture art, integrating stone carvings and brick carvings, making it appear magnificent. 4. Describe the fragments of Huizhou architecture
Huizhou architecture is one of the main schools of ancient Chinese architecture. It combines the aura of Huizhou’s mountains and rivers with the essence of customs and culture, especially residential buildings, ancestral halls and archways. . Hongcun currently has 137 ancient residences from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Among them, the most representative Chengzhi Hall was built by Wang Dinggui, a salt merchant in the late Qing Dynasty. The construction of Chengzhi Hall cost 600,000 taels of silver, of which 100 taels of gold were plated on the wood carvings. All the wood carvings in the house were made by It took 20 craftsmen four years to complete the carving. The carvings are exquisite and it is the most ancient residential house in southern Anhui. It is known as the folk Forbidden City. As another representative of Huizhou architecture, the archway is a mark of Huizhou people’s journey. 5. The composition of the second unit of the second volume of the sixth grade is about the folk houses in southern Anhui
China has many characteristics. Folk customs, customs, and sentiments are all very unique. There are all kinds of folk customs, and folk customs are also colorful. Of course, there are also folk sentiments, which are too good to be mentioned. In addition to these, of course there are also residential buildings. Having said so much, let’s get to the point. Today I will introduce to you the folk houses in southern Anhui. Wannan folk houses refer to the ancient villages located in the mountainous area south of the Yangtze River in Anhui Province, represented by Xidi and Hongcun. They are represented by Huizhou (now Huangshan City, Jixi County and Jiangxi Wuyuan County) style and Huaiyang style. Huizhou folk houses have With strong Huizhou cultural characteristics, other residential buildings in southern Anhui profoundly highlight the style characteristics of its cultural transition zone. Let’s first introduce Hongcun in Anhui. Hongcun is located in the northeast of Yi County, Anhui Province. It was founded in the Shaoxi period of the Southern Song Dynasty (1131 AD) and has been here for more than 800 years. It is backed by the remaining veins of Huangshan Mountain, with steaming clouds and rosy clouds, just like a long scroll of mountains and rivers. It integrates natural landscape and cultural landscape into one, and is known as "the countryside in Chinese paintings". ah ! How beautiful the environment in Hongcun is! Then let’s take a look at what kind of folk houses there are in southern Anhui under such a beautiful scenery. Let’s take a look at what the architectural structure of the folk houses in southern Anhui is like. The ancient buildings in Hongcun are all with whitewashed walls and blue tiles, arranged in regular rows. Chengzhitang is the grandest and most exquisite masterpiece among them, and is known as the "Folk Forbidden City". It can be called an exhibition hall of Huizhou woodcarving craftsmanship. Various woodcarvings are rich in layers, complex and vivid. After more than a hundred years, they are still magnificent. The folk houses in southern Anhui are known as the "folk palace". The craftsmanship inside must be very exquisite. However, no matter how exquisite the house is, it must have good functions. Next, let's take a look at its functions. The cow-shaped villages and artificial water systems planned and built by the people of Gu Hongcun are "one of the great wonders in the history of architecture" today: the majestic and green Leigang is the head of the cow, the towering ancient trees are the horns, and the residential groups scattered from east to west are like huge cows. body. The clear spring is named "cow intestine" and flows through the village into Yuetang, which is called "cow stomach". It is filtered and flows to Nanhu, which is called "cow stomach" outside the village. People also built four bridges on the rivers surrounding the village as corbels. This ingenious and scientific design of the village water system not only provides fire-fighting water for the villagers, but also regulates the temperature, provides convenient production and domestic water for residents, and creates a "Huanji Wei Fang River is far away, in front of every house" A good environment with clear springs. Hongcun is built on mountains and rivers. Behind the village is a green mountain as a barrier. The terrain is high and can block the wind from the north. There is no danger of flash floods and the pleasure of looking up at the mountains and the sound of springs. It seems that the ancients were very smart. They spent a lot of effort on providing water for firefighting and regulating the temperature. However, they provided convenience for residents to use water for production and domestic use. How do people evaluate such a good residential house? When talking about the folk houses in southern Anhui, people naturally think of the blue bricks, black tiles and horse-head walls of Huizhou architecture. In fact, among the Hui-style architecture, there is also a hanging mountain-style house with wooden frames and earth walls that is loved by farmers. This kind of house is built with wood, stone and adhesive that are abundant in the mountainous areas of southern Anhui as the main materials, with a beam-type wooden frame as the structural system and earth walls as the enclosure system. The folk houses in Wannan are introverted courtyards formed with a deep patio as the center. This basic form is the focus of people's attention. Rainwater falling on rainy days flows into the patio from the four roofs, which is commonly known as "four waters return to the hall".
At the same time, it also vividly reflects the mentality of businessmen in southern Anhui that "the wealth does not flow to outsiders", which is similar to Shanxi folk houses. The site selection, layout and architectural form of ancient residential villages in southern Anhui are all guided by the Feng Shui theory of Zhouyi. It not only embodies the traditional Chinese philosophical thought of the unity of nature and man, but also expresses the yearning and respect for nature. There is so much to introduce today! Do you know something about the architectural structure, architectural function and people's evaluation of Wannan's folk houses? But if you only read other people's introductions, why not go and see it yourself and experience it?
Revise and revise yourself 6. An essay on folk houses in southern Anhui
Xidi and Hongcun in Yixian County are the most representative of the folk houses in southern Anhui. They were included in the "World Heritage List" in 2000.
Hongcun now has more than 140 well-preserved ancient dwellings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The rows of stacked courtyards in the village complement each other with the beautiful lakes and mountains. The movement and stillness are harmonious, and the scenery is everywhere, making you step into the picture. Hongcun, with its wonderful pastoral scenery, is known as the "Village in Chinese Paintings". There are 124 ancient residences from the Ming and Qing Dynasties and 3 ancestral halls existing in Xidi. The "three wonders" (residences, ancestral halls, and archways) and the "three carvings" (wood carvings, stone carvings, and brick carvings) that represent the Huizhou style of residential architecture are well preserved here.
Blue tiles and white walls are the outstanding impressions of Huizhou architecture. The well-proportioned horse head wall not only has the beauty of shape, but more importantly, it has the practical function of fire prevention and blocking the spread of fire.
One of the characteristics of Huizhou folk houses is the high walls and deep courtyards. On the one hand, it is to protect against thieves, and on the other hand, it is the need for psychological security for migratory families who have suffered from displacement.
Another characteristic of Huizhou folk houses is the inward courtyard formed with a deep patio as the center, surrounded by high walls. There are almost no tiles visible outside, and only the long and narrow patio provides lighting, ventilation and connection with the outside world. communicate. This basic form with the patio as the center and enclosed by high walls is the focus of people's attention. The rainwater that falls on rainy days flows into the patio from the four roofs, which is commonly known as "the four waters return to the hall". It also vividly reflects the mentality of Huizhou merchants that "the rich water does not flow out of the fields", which is similar to Shanxi folk houses.
The folk houses in southern Anhui are famous for preserving a large number of ancient buildings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Xin'an is a cultural town with many officials and merchants in history. In She County alone, there are hundreds of non-commissioned officers above the rank of civil servant. Huizhou merchants spread throughout southern Anhui. "Among the wealthy families, Xin'an is the first in Jiangnan." Their huge wealth has created this exquisite ancient residential museum in southern Anhui. The ancient buildings of the Ming and Qing Dynasties that exist in Huizhou today are mainly concentrated in Yi County, She County, Jixi and Xiuning. There are more than ten ancient villages in Yixian County, including Xidi, Hongcun, Bishan, Pingshan, etc. There are more ancient buildings in Yicheng. Hundreds of valuable ancient buildings are preserved throughout the county. There are 122 buildings in Xidi alone. There are 365 ancient buildings in Shexian County, more than 100 valuable ones, and 27 ancient ancestral halls, concentrated in Xiongcun, Chengkan, Qiankou, Tangyue, Shendu and other villages. There are more than 100 ancient buildings in Jixi today, concentrated in Homtou, Hangkou, Fengcun, Shangzhuang and other places. Ancient villages generally consist of archways, houses, ancestral halls, water mouths, road pavilions, workshops, etc. Some villages are very large, such as Chengkan, which has 99 streets and lanes. Strangers often get lost after entering. Many villages have a well-organized layout, and the water system in Hongcun is an example. Hongcun built a dam near the mountain at the head of the village. The water canals in the village enter each household from both sides of the street and merge into the Yuetang in the middle of the village. Then it is diverted to households and flows into Nanhu Lake. Each household has large and small channels for washing and drinking water. The layout of residential buildings is generally a three-heyuan or four-heyyuan with a patio as the center and two floors. Medium and large-sized houses are composed of multiple courtyards, and the buildings are all painted with white walls and black tiles. Many of the buildings of wealthy families in the old days were large in scale and decorated with three Huizhou carvings, with exquisite and well-proportioned layouts. Pieces of ancient buildings in southern Anhui are embedded in the vast famous mountains and beautiful waters of Huangshan Mountain, Jiuhua Mountain, and Xin'an River. They are a perfect match between heaven and earth, just like a world-class park that needs no decoration.
The folk houses in Wannan are buildings with more than two floors, with a small patio enclosed in the middle, and the hall is located on the north side of the patio. There are no walls, doors or windows between the hall and the patio, so it is an open space. On the north side of the hall, that is, at the rear, there is a wooden Taishi wall. On both sides of the Taishi wall are doors without door leaves. Furniture such as the long table and the Eight Immortals table are placed in front of the Taishi wall. On the east and west sides of the hall, there are several groups of back chairs and coffee tables respectively. People often place some utensils on them as decoration.
Wannan ancient villages refer to ancient villages located in the mountainous area south of the Yangtze River in Anhui Province, represented by Xidi and Hongcun. They are historical and traditional villages with the same regional cultural background and have strong Huizhou cultural characteristics.
The mountainous area of ??southern Anhui has a long history and profound cultural heritage, and has preserved a large number of traditional buildings and villages with similar shapes and distinctive features. The ancient villages in southern Anhui are not only cleverly integrated with the topography, landforms, and mountains and rivers, but also coupled with the strong economic strength of Huizhou merchants in the Ming and Qing Dynasties to support their hometown, cultural and educational development has become increasingly prosperous. Those Huizhou merchants returned home with elegance, literature, nobility, and detachment. The mentality of conceiving and building residences makes the cultural environment of the ancient village richer and the village landscape more prominent.
The biggest difference between the ancient villages in southern Anhui and other villages is that the construction and development of ancient villages in southern Anhui have to a considerable extent been independent of agriculture. The consciousness, lifestyle and taste of the residents of ancient villages greatly surpassed the ideology of farmers and the general citizen class, and pursued a life taste consistent with the literati and official classes, so they have a strong cultural flavor. On the basis of the basic stereotypes, the ancient village houses in Wannan adopt different decorative techniques, build small courtyards, dig pools, install leaky windows, skillfully set up bonsais, carve beams and painted pillars, and inscribe orchid plaques to create an elegant living environment, all of which reflect the extremely high values ??of local residents. High cultural quality and artistic accomplishment.
The site selection and construction of ancient villages in southern Anhui follow the Zhouyi Feng Shui theory with a history of more than 2,000 years, which emphasizes the ideal state of the unity of nature and man and full respect for the natural environment. It pays attention to the dual needs of material and spiritual. It has a scientific foundation and a high aesthetic concept. The architectural features of the ancient villages in Wannan were developed with the prosperity of Huizhou merchants during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. They are unique architectural forms that can best reflect the exquisiteness of their conception and superb craftsmanship in a limited building space. Later, Huizhou merchants gradually declined, but the architectural features of this kind of Huizhou folk houses were preserved because they were attached to the ancient folk houses and villages, so they have important historical and architectural value. 7. When writing about the folk houses in southern Anhui, you should include the festivals and special snacks that are more important there.
When you walk into the ancient villages in southern Anhui, you will see the rows of stacked courtyards complementing the beautiful lakes and mountains. The movement and stillness are suitable, and there are scenery everywhere, and you can step into the picture step by step.
Xidi and Hongcun in Yixian County are the most representative of the folk houses in southern Anhui. There are 124 ancient residences from the Ming and Qing Dynasties and 3 ancestral halls existing in Xidi. Hongcun, with its wonderful pastoral scenery, is known as the "Village in Chinese Paintings" and has more than 140 well-preserved ancient dwellings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The "three wonders" (residences, ancestral halls, and archways) and the "three carvings" (wood carvings, stone carvings, and brick carvings) that represent the Huizhou style of residential architecture are well preserved here.
Blue tiles and white walls are the outstanding impressions of Huizhou architecture. The well-proportioned horse head wall not only has the beauty of shape, but more importantly, it has the practical function of fire prevention and blocking the spread of fire. One of the characteristics of Huizhou folk houses is the high walls and deep courtyards. On the one hand, it is to protect against thieves, and on the other hand, it is the need for psychological security for migratory families who have suffered from displacement. Another characteristic of Huizhou folk houses is the inward courtyard formed with a deep patio as the center, surrounded by high walls. There are almost no tiles visible from the outside. Only the narrow patio is used for lighting and ventilation to communicate with the outside world. This basic form with the patio as the center and enclosed by high walls is the focus of people's attention. The rainwater that falls on rainy days flows into the patio from the four roofs, which is commonly known as "the four waters return to the hall", which also vividly reflects the mentality of Huizhou merchants that "the rich water does not flow out of the fields".
The folk houses in Wannan not only have unique architecture, but also are located in southern Anhui, at the foot of Huangshan Mountain, with beautiful scenery and pleasant climate. Pieces of ancient buildings in southern Anhui are exquisitely laid out and well-proportioned. They are embedded in the famous mountains and beautiful waters, making them a perfect match between heaven and earth. The white walls and black tiles are simple and elegant, contrasting with the green mountains and green waters, making it seem like a paradise far away from the hustle and bustle. 8. A 200-word essay on Wannan folk houses
Wannan folk houses refer to ancient villages located in the mountainous area south of the Yangtze River in Anhui Province, represented by Xidi and Hongcun. They have the same regional cultural background. It is a historical and traditional village with strong Huizhou cultural characteristics.
Huizhou, a mountainous area in southern Anhui, has a long history and profound cultural heritage, and has preserved a large number of traditional buildings and villages with similar shapes and distinctive features.
The ancient villages in southern Anhui are not only cleverly integrated with the topography, landforms and mountains and rivers, but also coupled with the strong economic strength of Huizhou merchants in the Ming and Qing Dynasties to support their hometown, culture and education have become increasingly prosperous. Those Huizhou merchants returned home with elegance, elegance, nobility and detachment. The mentality of conceiving and building residences makes the cultural environment of the ancient village richer and the village landscape more prominent.
The biggest difference between the location of ancient villages in southern Anhui and other village forms is that the construction and development of ancient villages in southern Anhui have to a considerable extent been separated from dependence on agriculture. The consciousness, lifestyle and taste of the residents of ancient villages greatly surpassed the ideology of farmers and the general citizen class, and pursued a life taste consistent with that of literati and officials, so they have a strong cultural flavor.
Based on the basic stereotypes, the ancient village houses in southern Anhui adopt different decorative techniques, build small courtyards, dig pools, install leaky windows, cleverly set up bonsai, carved beams and painted buildings, and inscribed orchid plaques to create an elegant living environment. , all reflect the extremely high cultural quality and artistic accomplishment of local residents. The ancient villages of Wannan are located in ancient Huizhou (now Jixi, Huangshan City, Anhui Province, and Wuyuan, Jiangxi Province). Xidi and Hongcun are the two most representative ancient dwellings and are also typical representatives of the culture of the late feudal society in China - Huizhou culture The carrier embodies the exquisite craftsmanship of Huizhou folk houses and the characteristics of southern Anhui. The village shape is well preserved and the scenery is beautiful.
The village has respected Confucianism and education since ancient times, and its literary style has flourished, which embodies the Huizhou cultural phenomenon that reached its peak in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, such as the feudal ethical culture of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, the patriarchal culture of clans living together, and the village The Feng Shui culture under construction and the Huizhou merchant culture of Jia Er and Confucianism are profound in historical and cultural connotations. At the 24th UNESCO World Heritage Committee in 1999, two ancient dwellings in Xidi and Hongcun, Yixian County, Anhui Province, were listed as world cultural heritage for their well-preserved traditional features. They are the natural features of Huangshan City. It is listed in the World Cultural Heritage List for the second time with cultural landscapes. It is also the second city in China to have more than two world heritage sites at the same time after Beijing. It is also the first time in the world that residential buildings are included in the World Heritage List.
The white walls and black tiles are the outstanding impression of Huizhou architecture. The well-proportioned horse head wall not only has a beautiful shape, but more importantly, it has a practical function of firewall to block the spread of fire.
One of the characteristics of Huizhou folk houses is the high walls and deep courtyards. On the one hand, it is to protect against thieves, and on the other hand, it is the need for psychological safety for migratory families who have suffered from displacement. Another characteristic of Huizhou folk houses is the inward courtyard formed with a deep patio as the center, surrounded by high walls. There are almost no tiles visible from the outside. Only the narrow patio is used for lighting and ventilation to communicate with the outside world.
This basic form with the patio as the center and enclosed by high walls is the focus of people's attention. The rainwater that falls on rainy days flows from the four roofs into the patio, which is commonly known as "the four waters return to the hall". It also vividly reflects the Huizhou merchants' mentality of "don't let the rich water flow into the outsiders' fields", which is similar to Shanxi folk houses.
The folk houses in southern Anhui are famous for preserving a large number of ancient buildings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Xin'an is a cultural town with many officials and merchants in history. In She County alone, there are hundreds of non-commissioned officers above the rank of civil servant.
Huizhou merchants spread throughout southern Anhui. "Among the wealthy families, Xin'an is the first in Jiangnan." Their huge wealth has created this exquisite ancient residential museum in southern Anhui.
The ancient buildings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties that exist in Huizhou today are mainly concentrated in Yi County, She County, Jixi and Xiuning. There are more than ten ancient villages in Yi County today, the important ones such as Xidi, Hongcun, Bishan, Pingshan, etc.
There are more ancient buildings in Yicheng. Hundreds of valuable ancient buildings are preserved throughout the county.
There are 122 buildings in Xidi alone. There are 365 ancient buildings in Shexian County, more than 100 valuable ones, and 27 ancient ancestral halls, concentrated in Xiongcun, Chengkan, Qiankou, Tangyue, Shendu and other villages.
There are more than 100 ancient buildings in Jixi today, concentrated in Fongtou, Hangkou, Fengcun, Shangzhuang and other places. Ancient villages generally consist of archways, houses, ancestral halls, water mouths, road pavilions, workshops, etc. Some villages are very large, such as Chengkan, which has 99 streets and lanes. Strangers often get lost after entering.
Many villages have an orderly layout, and the water system in Hongcun is an example. Hongcun built a dam near the mountain at the head of the village. The water canals in the village enter each household from both sides of the street and merge into the Yuetang in the middle of the village.
Then it is distributed to households and flows into Nanhu Lake. Each household has large and small water channels for washing and drinking water.
The layout of residential buildings is generally a three-heyuan or four-heyyuan with a patio as the center, with two floors. Medium and large-sized houses are composed of multiple courtyards, and the buildings are all painted with white walls and black tiles.
Many of the buildings of wealthy families in the old days were large in scale and decorated with three Huizhou carvings, with exquisite and well-proportioned layouts. Pieces of ancient buildings in southern Anhui are embedded in the vast famous mountains and beautiful waters of Huangshan Mountain, Jiuhua Mountain, and Xin'an River. They are a perfect match between heaven and earth, just like a world-class park that needs no decoration.
The site selection, layout and architectural form of ancient residential villages in southern Anhui are all guided by the Feng Shui theory of Zhouyi, embodying the traditional Chinese philosophy of the unity of man and nature and the yearning and respect for nature. Those elegant residential buildings of the Ming and Qing Dynasties are closely integrated with nature, creating a living environment that is both scientific and interesting, which is the essence of traditional Chinese residential buildings.
The village’s unique water system is a model of water conservancy engineering that combines practicality and aesthetics, deeply embodying mankind’s outstanding wisdom in utilizing nature and transforming it. Its "layout workmanship, structural ingenuity, decorative beauty, exquisite construction, and profound cultural connotation" are rare among ancient residential buildings in China.
Among the many unique Hui-style residential villages in southern Anhui, Hongcun is the most representative. From the overall appearance, Hongcun is a unique cow-shaped ancient village in the ancient peach blossom garden. It has both mountain and forest scenery and water town style. It is known as the "countryside in Chinese paintings".
Every household in the village is connected by a waterway, and clear springs gurgling through each household. The stacked courtyards complement the lakes and mountains. There are scenery everywhere, and you can step into the picture step by step. You can take a leisurely stroll in the courtyard. The love is intoxicating.