Former Residence of Tang Shunzhi

Former Residence of Tang Shunzhi

The former residence of Tang Shunzhi is a cultural relic protection unit of Jiangsu Province.

The former residence of Tang Shunzhi is located at No. 86 Qingguo Lane. Originally named Baohetang, it is the birthplace of Tang Shunzhi. Tang Shunzhi (1507–1560), courtesy name Yingde and art name Jingchuan, was a scholar-official who passed the imperial examination in the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty. He served as an editor at the Hanlin Academy but was dismissed due to slander. For over a decade afterward, he lived in seclusion in the Yangxian Mountains of Yixing, where he studied literature and martial arts. A polymath well-versed in astronomy, geography, history, mathematics, military strategy, music theory, and the Five Elements, he was a true master of both the pen and the sword. At age 52, he was reinstated to lead resistance against Japanese pirates and died in office from illness. In the sixth year of the Chongzhen reign (1633), his great-grandson Tang Yuzhao renamed the residence Zhenhetang, the name which remains in use today. The former residence of Jingchuan (Tang Shunzhi) includes eight halls: Bayue (Eight Osmanthus), Zhenhe (Chastity and Harmony), Yishu (Easy Book), Yunxing (Bamboo Star), Sibing (Four Together), Fushi (Restoration), Songjian (Pine Health), and Lihuo (Rites and Harmony). Collectively known as the "Eight Residences of the Tang Family," they are situated along the middle section of Qingguo Lane, from Xuedong Lane to Ximiaogou today. These eight residences were built before the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty. Having experienced rise and decline over time, the original sites of Sibing and Fushi can no longer be found, but the others still exist—some have been renovated, while only Zhenhetang and Yunxingtang largely retain their original appearance. Zhenhetang was originally called Baohetang and was renamed Zhenhe by Tang Jingchuan’s great-grandson. It is one of the residences where Tang Jingchuan once lived. The original Zhenhetang complex included the entrance hall, sedan chair hall, main gate, inner gate, and the residential courtyard at the rear. The nanmu (phoebe nanmu) hall faces south and forms a complete “gauze hat hall,” spanning three bays with a width of 13.4 meters and a depth of 7 rafters (9.5 meters). The eaves columns are 4.5 meters high. It follows a post-and-lintel structure with large crescent beams as support beams. All materials, including the pillars, are made from nanmu and rosewood, demonstrating the use of exceptionally large and refined timber—the main pillars are thick enough to be encircled by a single person’s arms. Stone plinths support the wooden columns, and the roof has a gentle pitch. The upturned eaves feature double layers, and the main beam is adorned with painted designs. On the eastern corridor wall of the hall is embedded a stone tablet inscribed with the "Record of Baohetang," written and calligraphed by the Ming Dynasty calligrapher Sun Shenxing. This was created in the 45th year of the Wanli era (1617) to celebrate the 80th birthday of Tang Jingchuan’s son, Hezheng. In March 1982, it was designated as a provincial-level cultural relic protection unit.