Tongli Wuben Hall

Tongli Wuben Hall

Tongli Wuben Hall is a cultural relic protection unit of Jiangsu Province.

Wuben Hall (No. 124 Xintiandi)

Located at the eastern end of Xintiandi, it is commonly known as the "Ye Family Gatehouse." Originally built in the late Ming Dynasty, it was reconstructed in the 21st year of the Guangxu reign during the Qing Dynasty by Ye Zhongpu, who was conferred the title of “Imperial Appointed Senior Official, Third-Rank Official Rank.”

The architecture of Wuben Hall has been well preserved, largely retaining its original appearance. Facing south and fronting the street while backing onto the river, the hall consists of five courtyards in total, covering an area of over two thousand square meters. A long, deep service alley divides dozens of rooms and halls into eastern and western sections. Legend has it that the Ye family of Wuben Hall were skilled in feng shui, and the layout of this architectural complex resembles a crane lying on its belly, facing south. The long, narrow service alley in the center is referred to as the crane’s neck, while the successive courtyards and rooms represent the crane’s body. The buildings in the eastern and western sections flanking the service alley symbolize the crane’s wings. The final section, containing the kitchen and servants’ quarters, represents the crane’s tail. The eastern section includes the entrance hall, sedan hall, main hall, theater stage, principal building, and front courtyard side rooms. The main hall extends slightly toward the rear courtyard on its northern side, designed for watching performances. This section served as the key area for receiving guests, featuring grand architecture, carved beams, painted rafters, and an extraordinary atmosphere, making it the most magnificent hall in the entire town. The western section includes water corridor rooms, a dry boat hall (boat-style hall), flower hall, room halls, principal building, and side rooms. Among these, the boat hall is uniquely designed and ingeniously constructed. Due to the dense layout of the residence, the boat hall was built to symbolize the presence of clear, flowing water within the home, resembling a boat sailing on rivers and lakes. The boat hall deliberately mimics the style of a painted pleasure boat, divided into five separate cabins, with all spaces between them separated by intricately carved window lattices. The left and right sides of the “boat” feature covered walkways, while the windows are made of ancient-style translucent tiles. When bamboo poles prop up the windows, it creates the illusion of a pleasure boat gently swaying on rippling waters—rich in poetic charm. Architecturally, a horizontal passageway connects the theater stage in the eastern section with the flower hall in the western section. The principal residential buildings—the east and west principal towers—form a raised corridor structure that is lower in the front and higher in the back, ensuring excellent lighting and bright interiors.

Wuben Hall is exquisitely built, large in scale, uniquely laid out (with a crane-shaped floor plan), and creative. It stands as a quintessential example of Jiangnan water town residences, integrating architectural layout, feng shui theory, and artistic design. In the second courtyard of the eastern section, there was once a plaque inscribed with the four characters “乐善好施” (Charitable and Benevolent), bestowed by Li Yuanhong, the President of the Republic of China in its early years. These four characters reflect the Ye family's tradition of charity and helping the poor. The third courtyard’s main hall features a couplet: “Yield a third in worldly affairs, and the world will seem vast; Reserve a bit in your heart, for children and grandchildren to reap”—expressing the Ye family’s humble, peaceful philosophy in life.

The eastern section includes the sedan hall, tea hall, main hall, principal building, and servant rooms, while the western section includes a small building, boat hall, flower hall, principal building, and servant rooms. The combined construction area of the eastern and western sections exceeds 2,000 square meters. In July 1986, Wuben Hall was listed as a cultural relic protection unit of Wujiang City.

On June 5, 2006, Tongli Wuben Hall was announced as part of the sixth batch of cultural relic protection units of Jiangsu Province.

Tongli Town: One of China’s Six Ancient Towns of the Yangtze River Delta, Tongli was formerly known as “Futu.” In the early Tang Dynasty, it was renamed “Tongli,” and in the Song Dynasty, the name was further modified from its original characters. Established in the Song Dynasty, Tongli has a history of over 1,000 years as of 2015 and is a renowned ancient water town in China.

Tongli Town is located in Wujiang District, Suzhou City, approximately 18 kilometers from downtown Suzhou and 80 kilometers from Shanghai. Covering an area of 33 hectares, the town is embraced by five lakes and interconnected by 49 bridges, with a network of rivers dividing the area into seven islands. Traditional homes in the ancient town are situated along the waterways, with boats accessible from nearly every household. Well-preserved bridges from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties remain throughout the town. In 1982... Detailed information about Tongli Town++

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units of Jiangsu Province