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June 25, 2012

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Home » District » Jiading

Finding more meaning in life through sketching

June 25, 2012, Monday | Print Edition

WHILE life moves along at a pace of its own, pictures remain still, capturing a moment in time. Jiading Town community school recently opened a sketch class for retired senior people. With pens and ink, the elderly students have started sketching beautiful pictures of the historical and cultural features of Jiading. Some of the drawings feature ancient houses surrounded by trees and bamboos, birds flying through the blue sky or placid rivers meandering across the town. The retired people have much praise for the class. The followings are what they said.

(Pan Zheng)"I've realized a childhood dream with lines and colors." - Chen Genxiang

"Traditional thoughts should be changed as the society is stepping forward. It's never too old to learn. Painting keeps my mind clean and produces fun in life. It's good for longevity. I'll never stop learning." - Xu Xiang'ang

"I know I'm old now but I'm still energetic. Painting pictures without any pressure is a perfect way to enjoy life and nature, and such a good attitude will gradually infect and benefit younger generations." - Wang Hongkun

"Mountains, rivers, forests, buildings… their charm and vigor are displayed through the line sketches. It shows me the wonderful scene of nature, and also makes me love my life much more deeply." - Yin YuncuiMemorial for ancient sages



Now located at 159 Renmin Street in Jiading Town, Sixian Pavilion is in the small woods near the Qilian River and faces north. With six rooms, this Chinese ancient style housing occupies an area of more than 70 square meters.

In Chinese, sixian literally means remember the wise men from the past. Sixian Pavilion is a memorial in tribute to ancient sages. It mainly worships good local officials from ancient times and displays a record of their good deeds.

Li Zikun, the magistrate of then Jiading County, built Sixian Pavilion in 1535 during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). In 1577 it was relocated, but returned to its original location in 1597. It was restored in 1896 during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Now there are 11 stone inscriptions preserved in the pavilion and 10 were carved during the Ming Dynasty.Garden of dreams



Qiuxiapu Garden is in the east part of Jiading Town. It occupies about three hectares after an expansion, which was completed in the 1980s. It is composed of Gong's Garden, Shen's Garden, Jin's Garden and the Town God's Temple.

Gong's Garden was once the residence of Gong Hong, the principal officer of the ministry of works around 1522 to 1567 in the Ming Dynasty. With a history of more than 500 years, many local celebrities used to visit the garden and left a lot of wonderful literary works.

Qiuxiapu Garden's landscaping is rather outstanding among jiangnan (regions south of the lower reach of the Yangtze River) style gardens. Defensive wall a remnant of the past



The city wall of Jiading was first constructed in 1219 during the Southern Song Dynasty. Starting from the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), local people started to restore it with bricks and rocks, and it was strengthened once again during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

There are four gates and four water gates on each side of the wall. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the wall protected residents from the invasion of Japanese pirates.

In modern times, Jiading's city wall was gradually dismantled. Now, there are only some remains of the south and west water gates and the wall base still preserved.

The West Water Gate of Jiading in the picture was first built in 1358 in the Yuan Dynasty and was reconstructed in 1991. Originally it had two openings. One was removed in the 1980s. Old street's charms know no end



Zhouqiao Old Street is located in the central area of Jiading Town. Since Jiading County was set up in 1218 during the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), the street has been the center and most prosperous region in the district.

It not only boasts poetic scenes of an ancient water town with bridges, rivers and residences, but also features ancient pagodas, temples and gardens from the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties within a short distance of one another. This is rare in China. The area is lovingly referred to as the "Roots of Jiading."

Zhouqiao Old Street is still one of the most popular blocks in Jiading. It serves as a tourism and shopping path connecting many attractions such as the Confucius Temple, Huilongtan Pond and Qiuxiapu Garden.Xingxian Archway stands proud



Xingxian Archway is located on Xuedian Street in front of Jiading Confucius Temple. It was first built in 1294 and through the years has also been known as Binxing Archway, Tengjiao Archway and Xieyuan Archway. In 1552, its original name was restored and it has been known as Xingxian Archway ever since.

It was reconstructed twice in 1734 and 1873 in the Qing Dynasty. It faces Yucai Archway, which was established in 1353. The two archways share a splendid appearance with broad stone pillars and exquisite carvings.

Jiading


 

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