Sui Gaotang

Sui Gaotang

Sui Gaotang is a cultural heritage site protected by Jiangsu Province.

Sui Gaotang is located at Hengjin Bridge in Luxiang Ancient Village, Dongshan Town, Wuzhong District, Suzhou City. It was originally the residence of Wang Quan, a recluse during the Ming Dynasty. Wang Quan, courtesy name Bingzhi, was a native of Dongshan. He was once selected to serve as an official in the Hangzhou Prefecture but chose not to pursue an official career and did not take up the position. At that time, his elder brother Wang Ao, who held a post in the capital, wrote him a farewell message that included the line “I yield to you one move of superior wisdom,” prompting Wang Quan to name his residence Sui Gaotang. The original complex included multiple structures such as Dongwang Tower, Yuanxuan Hall, and Sui Gaotang. Today, only a few buildings aligned along a central axis remain, including the gate tower, the main hall of Sui Gaotang, and the rear building.

The gate tower is built of brick and stone. Above the door frame, there are hand-shaped brick carvings projecting outward, layered with several rows of bricks featuring curved and tapered lines. The top features an ornamental drip edge and a delicate ridge with fine moldings. The screen wall is coated with plain plaster, adorned with diamond patterns resembling “intestine coils” and “brush-and-ingot” motifs at the upper section.

The main hall is five bays wide, measuring 17.1 meters, and 8.2 meters deep. The width of each bay is as follows: central bay 3.8 meters, side bays 3.2 meters, and end bays 3.45 meters. The total depth is 8.2 meters, including a front porch 2 meters deep, a 4.7-meter span between the front and rear inner columns, and a rear porch 1.5 meters deep. The rear porch spans all five bays, while the front porch is only present in the central and side bays; the end bays are divided into separate rooms. The central and side bays have diagonally laid square bricks with 0.32-meter sides. The eastern end bay has been converted to a wooden floor, while the western end bay is paved with small bricks. The eaves of the central and side bays are fitted with bluestone slabs and coping stones. In the center of the central bay, there are two steps made of stone slabs, each 1.9 meters long and 0.33 meters wide. The column bases are bluestone with mushroom-shaped tops, the front inner column bases are flat bluestone drums, and the rear inner column bases are flat round wooden drums. The front and rear inner columns vary in design, indicating replacements made during later renovations. The beams and columns are relatively thick, with the inner columns having a diameter of 0.27 meters. The column tops are fitted with bracket arms featuring curved edges, supporting raised beams. The front porch and rear corridor extend five bays deep. The raised beams are of a four-bay structure, with one end inserted into the rear inner column. At the center of the gable beam is a short column topped with a one-bracket-three-riser arch and a cap block, supporting the ridge beam, with cloud-shaped carvings on both ends. The side bays feature a through-tenon beam structure with six columns, each topped with bracket arms and cap blocks supporting the roof purlins. All columns are interconnected with curved beams and through-tenon ties, forming the complete roof truss of the main hall, covered with rafters to create a unified structure.

Sui Gaotang now serves as the Dongting Merchants Exhibition Hall and is open to the public as a scenic spot. The hall displays scenes of business activities of the descendants of the Wang family, reflecting the continuity and generational legacy of the Dongting merchants' trade.

In March 2019, Sui Gaotang was designated by the provincial government as part of the eighth batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Heritage Protection Units.

Wang Quan (1905–1975) was from Qingfengdian Town, Ding County (now Dingzhou). He graduated in 1929 from the university department of the Hanyang Arsenal Technical School, specializing in pyrotechnics. In the spring of 1930, he worked as a technician at the Shanghai Arsenal’s Powder Factory. In October 1931, he was transferred to the Jinling Arsenal Powder Factory as a technician, where he handled pyrotechnic work. After the Hanyang Arsenal Technical School relocated from Hanyang to Nanjing, he was hired as a part-time professor teaching courses on pyrotechnic operations and the prevention of pyrotechnic hazards. He graduated in 1938 from the Technical University of Berlin with a degree in pyrotechnics. At the end of December, he returned to China to participate in the War of Resistance against Japan.

193…… Detailed information about Wang Quan++

Luxiang Village: Luxiang Village is located in Wuzhong District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province, within Dongshan Town. Formerly known as Luxiang Ancient Village, it lies against the mountain and faces the lake, with Moli Peak to the east and Taihu Lake to the west. Covering an area of 0.74 square kilometers, it gradually developed into a village during the Southern Song Dynasty. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, it produced many notable figures; for example, the hometown of Wang Ao, the Grand Secretary of the early Zhengde era in the Ming Dynasty, was in this village. The ancient village is home to numerous high-grade mansions and residences from the Ming and Qing periods, such as Hangu Villa, Beijianhu, and Guanyin Hall, densely arranged along the lanes. It is the village in Wu County with the highest number, best preservation, and highest quality of ancient architecture.

The architecture of the ancient village adapts to the terrain, undulating along the slopes and interweaving in a dense layout. Luxiang Village has many… Detailed information about Luxiang Village++

Further Reading:

· Eighth Batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Heritage Protection Units