Hulan Chenghuang Temple

Hulan Chenghuang Temple

Hulan Chenghuang Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

The original site of the Chenghuang Temple is located at No. 60 Matou Street, Jianshe Community, Hulan Subdistrict Office, Hulan District. It was first built in 1909, the first year of the Xuantong reign during the Qing Dynasty, funded by the Hulan Chamber of Commerce on the site of the former city garrison commandant’s office. Initially, it consisted of a main hall and a rear hall, along with three main rooms in the east courtyard. After the Republic of China period, local merchants and gentry raised funds again to rebuild it, expanding it to three halls and erecting a stele commemorating the reconstruction of Hulan Chenghuang Temple, which records the temple’s construction process. The fragmented stele remains to this day. Currently, there are three surviving structures: the front hall, middle hall, and rear hall. The front hall is 8.43 meters long from east to west and 7.2 meters wide from north to south, with a floor area of 60.48 square meters and a height of 5.9 meters. It has three bays in width and two in depth. The middle hall is 9.4 meters long from east to west and 7.5 meters wide from north to south, with a floor area of 70.5 square meters and a height of 6 meters. It also has three bays in width and two in depth. The rear hall is 8.5 meters long from east to west and 6.7 meters wide, with a floor area of 56.95 square meters and a height of 5.8 meters. It has three bays in width and two in depth. The total floor area of these three buildings is 187.93 square meters. All three levels of the Chenghuang Temple halls are aligned along a central axis and face south. Their architectural structure consists of blue bricks, blue tiles, flush gables, raised ridges, single eaves, and paired inserted rafter heads. On the front eaves’ underside, on the beam above the protruding purlin, the raised crossbeams are carved with standing dragon heads. The current Chenghuang Temple covers an area of 420.75 square meters. At the time of its initial construction, there were three auxiliary rooms in the east courtyard of the three-hall structure, covering an area of 100 square meters, with painted beams and carved rafters. The architectural layout of the Chenghuang Temple is solemn and dignified, with a simple yet rigorous structural design. In 1947, during the commercial renovation of Hulan County, religious activities in the temple ceased, and it was converted into residential housing. To protect cultural relics and showcase the profound historical culture of the ancient city of Hulan, the temple was restored in 2016 and officially opened to the public on September 3, 2017. It now covers an area of 3,300 square meters and includes three main halls, four auxiliary halls, two octagonal towers, one entrance archway, and two corridors. The existing three main structures are the front hall, middle hall, and rear hall. The front hall is a seven-rafter, single-eave, pre-and-post corridor, flush-gable structure with three bays in both width and depth; the middle hall is a seven-rafter, single-eave, front corridor, flush-gable structure with three bays in both width and depth; and the rear hall is a six-rafter, single-eave, no-corridor, flush-gable structure with three bays in width and one in depth. Along the central axis of the Chenghuang Temple, the three main halls — the Wenchang Hall, Chenghuang Hall, and Cihang Hall — are arranged in sequence. The Chenghuang Temple is one of the ancient buildings in Hulan District and prominently features traditional Chinese architectural characteristics.

Hulan Chenghuang Temple is the most completely preserved and only ancient Chenghuang temple building in Harbin to date. After renovation and reconstruction, it officially opened to visitors on September 3, 2017. The temple’s architectural history and style hold great value for studying the history and culture of Hulan, as well as significant importance for researching the local culture, folk economy, and historical heritage of Harbin City.

Address: No. 60 Matou Road, Hulan District

Information source: Hulan District People’s Government