Former Residence of Pan Shien

Former Residence of Pan Shien

The former residence of Pan Shien is a cultural tourism attraction.

The former residence of Pan Shien, also known as Lin Dun New Residence or Liu Yu Hall, is located at No. 3, Niu Jia Alley, Lin Dun Road. It was formerly called “Tai Fu Mansion.” The residence faces south and originally had three routes with six courtyards, but now only three routes with four courtyards remain, covering an area of 2,135 square meters. The main section is centrally located with a clear axis, consisting in sequence of the entrance hall, sedan hall, main hall, and inner hall. The main hall, “Liu Yu Tang,” was once the place where Pan Shien received distinguished guests and held wedding and funeral ceremonies, and it is relatively well preserved. The main section originally had three exquisitely carved brick gate towers, all dated to the Kangxi era, but unfortunately they were destroyed during the “Cultural Revolution” in 1966. In 1963, the former residence of Pan Shien was listed as a Suzhou Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Unit, and in June 2006 it was upgraded to a Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The second courtyard of the western section is the Mandarin Duck Hall. During renovations in 1983, two quite valuable plaques that had been hidden by later-added “ceiling” structures were discovered inside the hall. One is a horizontal plaque inscribed with the seal script “Ying Yu Xian Guan” (Hall of the Immortal Apricot and Elm) by Feng Guifen in the fourth year of the Tongzhi reign; the other is a square black lacquered plaque with a coiled dragon design, inscribed with the character “Fu” (Blessing), bestowed upon Pan Shien by Emperor Daoguang.

The third courtyard of the western section is the “Gauze Hat Hall,” which was once the residence of Chen Yucheng, the Ying Wang (King of Ying) of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The hall is three bays wide, and its floor plan resembles a “black gauze hat.” The central bay has a front porch that looks like the top of the hat, while the side bays at the back have two wing rooms resembling the hat wings—hence the name “Gauze Hat Hall.” The interior and exterior decorations of the hall are exquisitely crafted and well preserved. Above the center of the hall hangs a black plaque inscribed with the “Imperial Poem and Preface for the Nine Elders’ Gathering,” written by Grand Secretary Yu Minzhong in the third year of the Qianlong reign.

Pan Shien (1769–1854) was a renowned official of the Qing Dynasty. His original name was Shi Fu, with the childhood name Ri Lin, courtesy name Huai Tang (also recorded as Huai Ting), and literary name Zhi Xuan. In his later years, he called himself Si Bu Lao Ren (Old Man of Thoughtful Repentance). His study rooms were named Zhen Yi Zhai, Si Bu Tang, and Qing Song. The Pan family of Wu County originally came from the Central Plains. During the Tang Dynasty, Pan Fengshi served as the prefect of Shezhou and, due to his benevolent governance, stayed on in Shezhou after his term ended when the local elders begged him to remain. Pan Shien’s sixth-generation ancestor, Pan Zhonglan, migrated north from She County during the Ming Dynasty and settled in Suzhou, a place long praised for its “refined customs and flourishing culture.” He first served as... (Pan Shien’s detailed information++)