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A last unspoiled oasis of antiquity
By Wing Tan |
January 24, 2009, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
NANHUI Xinchang Ancient Town has been honored as one of China's well-preserved historical and cultural relics.
The town, dating back more than 1,300 years, was recently recognized as a national-level "Famous Old Town with Historical and Cultural Values" by the state ministries of housing and cultural heritage.
It is the third town in Shanghai to receive the national honor after Fengjing Town in Jinshan District and Zhujiajiao in Qingpu District.
Xinchang Ancient Town is Shanghai's last ancient town that remains relatively unexploited and intact.
Beautifully carved wooden window frames and elaborately painted signboards (though faded) are common sights along the 1.5-kilometer stone-paved main street from the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties.
Flanked by timber facades, doors and shutters, the narrow street has changed little since the times of the emperors. Things are truly old on this street. Few are painted, and the wood has weathered without being painted garish colors.
Surrounded by four canals in four directions, the town has a 100,000-square-meter residential area that was built in the Ming and Qing dynasties.
It is one of China's largest ancient town with a 1,200-meter stone riverbank that is more than 630 years old. It has 69 yimen, huge, stone gateways that demonstrate a family's wealth.
With 10 temples and shrines and a church, Taoism, Buddhism and Christianity have co-existed and thrived for hundreds of years.
For centuries, Xinchang Town, once under the jurisdiction of Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, ran a sea salt-producing business on the northeast plain of the Yangtze River Delta region.
As the salt business expanded quickly, it became a more residential area and people settled down there. Most residents then were successful businessmen, who opened numerous stores in the town selling everything a man could need from birth till death.
Today, locals still lead a peaceful life in the same houses where their ancestors lived hundreds of years ago.
Due to its remoteness and quiet, the town was the perfect choice for director Ang Lee who filmed parts of "Lust, Caution" and "Ip Man" (about Bruce Lee's legendary teacher) here.
The town, dating back more than 1,300 years, was recently recognized as a national-level "Famous Old Town with Historical and Cultural Values" by the state ministries of housing and cultural heritage.
It is the third town in Shanghai to receive the national honor after Fengjing Town in Jinshan District and Zhujiajiao in Qingpu District.
Xinchang Ancient Town is Shanghai's last ancient town that remains relatively unexploited and intact.
Beautifully carved wooden window frames and elaborately painted signboards (though faded) are common sights along the 1.5-kilometer stone-paved main street from the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties.
Flanked by timber facades, doors and shutters, the narrow street has changed little since the times of the emperors. Things are truly old on this street. Few are painted, and the wood has weathered without being painted garish colors.
Surrounded by four canals in four directions, the town has a 100,000-square-meter residential area that was built in the Ming and Qing dynasties.
It is one of China's largest ancient town with a 1,200-meter stone riverbank that is more than 630 years old. It has 69 yimen, huge, stone gateways that demonstrate a family's wealth.
With 10 temples and shrines and a church, Taoism, Buddhism and Christianity have co-existed and thrived for hundreds of years.
For centuries, Xinchang Town, once under the jurisdiction of Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, ran a sea salt-producing business on the northeast plain of the Yangtze River Delta region.
As the salt business expanded quickly, it became a more residential area and people settled down there. Most residents then were successful businessmen, who opened numerous stores in the town selling everything a man could need from birth till death.
Today, locals still lead a peaceful life in the same houses where their ancestors lived hundreds of years ago.
Due to its remoteness and quiet, the town was the perfect choice for director Ang Lee who filmed parts of "Lust, Caution" and "Ip Man" (about Bruce Lee's legendary teacher) here.
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