Former Residence of Qian Boxuan (Qian Residence)

Former Residence of Qian Boxuan (Qian Residence)

The former residence of Qian Boxuan (Qian Residence) is a Suzhou Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The former residence of Qian Boxuan, located in Xianqiao Lane on Lindun Road, was designated as a Suzhou Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Unit in 1998.

Qian Boxuan (1897–1986) was a renowned traditional Chinese medicine practitioner from Suzhou. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, he served as the head of the Gynecology Department at Xiyuan Hospital, affiliated with the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences in Beijing. He was a deputy to the Third and Fourth National People’s Congresses and a member of the Fifth and Sixth National Committees of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. He passed away in Suzhou on August 17, 1986.

The residence faces south and consists of two rows with six courtyards. The third courtyard on the east side is the main hall, which is 10.4 meters wide and 8.3 meters deep, featuring three bays. The roof has a relatively gentle pitch, with flat-style beams, front and rear verandas, and delicately carved elements such as mountain mist clouds, oar-shaped woodwork, and lotus-petal benches. The east and west walls are adorned with brickwork and fine tiled skirting, complete with plinth bases. The wooden bases are in the style of ancient mirrors. The entrance gate, inscribed with “Virtue Lasts for Generations,” features simple and classic brick carvings. The rear buildings of the later periods include a gate tower inscribed with “Wuyue Aristocratic Family,” written by Lu Runxiang, the top imperial scholar of the late Qing Dynasty. The western garden is now partially ruined but still retains a flower hall, corridors, and pavilions.

Qian Boxuan was born in the 22nd year of the Guangxu reign during the Qing Dynasty (1896). From a young age, he was influenced by his adoptive father, Qian Yisen, a well-known physician in the Wu region, and developed a strong passion for medicine. As he grew older, he studied foundational medical texts such as the Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon, Shen Nong’s Herbal Classic, and Treatise on Cold Damage, establishing a solid theoretical base. At the age of sixteen, he apprenticed under Cao Rongfu, the son of Cao Cangzhou, a court physician in Changmen and a famous doctor in the Jiangnan region, where he mastered internal medicine in traditional Chinese medicine. By the age of twenty, he returned home to study external medicine under his adoptive father. At the age of twenty-two, he began practicing medicine independently in Xuanqiao Lane. Qian Boxuan was highly skilled in medicine, approached his practice with seriousness and dedication, and achieved remarkable therapeutic results. Coupled with his amiable demeanor… More details about Qian Boxuan ++