Weiwentang (Former Residence of Fan Yanqiao)

Weiwentang (Former Residence of Fan Yanqiao)

Weiwentang (Former Residence of Fan Yanqiao)

Located in Fanjiadai, Qiziwei, and facing east, it is the ancestral property of Fan Kuichen (Fan Yanqiao’s father) and Fan Jianying. Built in the early Qing Dynasty, the residence consists of four courtyards with 34 rooms covering an area of 636 square meters. Weiwentang is the birthplace, home, and study of the modern-day notable figure Fan Yanqiao, hence it is also known as the Former Residence of Fan Yanqiao.

The four courtyards of Weiwentang all have three-bay layouts. The middle bay of the first courtyard is the wall gate room, paved with square bricks, with a six-panel bamboo screen door facing outward. The second courtyard has a raised room on the east side of the main room, featuring hardwood curved rafters, moon beams, and carved floral patterns under the moon beams. The third courtyard consists of three floors above three floors below, flanked by wing rooms on both sides; the southern wing room has an upper floor, and faces the courtyard with traditional floor-length windows or half-windows. The third courtyard also has three floors above and below, with wing rooms on both sides, and the northern wing room has an upper floor. To the south of the first and second courtyards, there is also a small two-story building with two floors and two additional single-story rooms. The courtyard is paved with granite slabs, and there is a simple gate tower on the east side, which bears no inscriptions or carvings. Many windows show evidence of having been made to allow light through using oyster shells.

Before the War of Resistance Against Japan, the property of Weiwentang was jointly owned by Fan Kuichen and Fan Jianying, who were distant uncle and nephew. During the war, Fan Kuichen passed on the property in Tongli to his fourth son, Fan Xiqian. In 1956, Weiwentang was placed under the management of the housing authority. By 1970, before the housing reform, the property was jointly owned by Fan Jianying and Fan Xiqian, who were distant brothers. During the housing reform, it was listed for confiscation. In 1980, when the housing reform policy was implemented, a residence consisting of three floors above and below, one wing room, and one single-story room, totaling nine rooms covering 169 square meters, was allotted to Fan Xiqian in the third courtyard. The portion of the residence allotted to Fan Jianying remained unchanged—no renovations or alterations were made, and the doors and windows in each courtyard retained their original condition. The main change was that the main doors between the courtyards were bricked up, so access to the rear courtyards could only be gained through the passageway on the north side. Additionally, the fourth courtyard of the former Yan Wenbin residence also accessed via this same passageway.