Dufeng Academy

Dufeng Academy

Dufeng Academy is a cultural relic protection unit of Zhejiang Province.

Dufeng Academy, located within the Niweng Cave Scenic Area in Jinyun County, Zhejiang Province, sits at the foot of Haoshan Mountain and faces Haoxi River (Lianxi). It is a memorial site where Zhu Xi, a Neo-Confucian scholar of the Song Dynasty, gave lectures. Historical texts such as the Yuan Dynasty’s Xian Du Zhi and the Ming Dynasty’s Chuzhou Prefecture Records state: Dufeng Academy lies to the west of Lianjinxi, directly facing Dufeng Peak. In the Chunxi reign year of Renyin (1182), Master Hui’an Zhu, while holding the post of Changping Envoy, submitted a memorial impeaching the Taizhou Prefect (Tang Zhongyou) but received no response. On August 22, during his inspection tour, he arrived in Jinyun County. While awaiting imperial instructions, he wandered the Xian Du Mountains and mentioned the idea of “retreating here for study.” At the same time, he composed a seven-character quatrain titled “In Response to Xu’s Mountain Dwelling Rhyme”: “A lone cloud drifting from the valley moves with ease, / Unbound by state affairs, it links rings at will. / I dismount, sprawl, and forget to leave, / The emerald stream and slender bamboo like my native hills.”

After Zhu Xi left, his students built a reading hall on Xian Du Rock. In the third year of the Baoqing era (1228), at the suggestion of Ye Sichang, a successful candidate in the imperial examinations from Qingtian, people constructed a ceremonial hall under the Tiger-Taming Rock opposite Dinghu Peak as a place for lectures, in commemoration of Zhu Xi. In the Dingmao year of the Xianchun era (1267), Qian Shuoyou, a successful candidate in the imperial examinations from Jinyun and Minister of Revenue, allocated funds to expand the site, naming it Dufeng Academy. In the twelfth year of the Tongzhi era (1873), He Nairong, the magistrate of Jinyun, relocated and rebuilt the academy at the site at the foot of Haoshan Mountain where “Master Hui’an once stayed and upheld his principles.”

Dufeng Academy features an architectural style from the late Qing Dynasty, covering an area of 1,200 square meters. Its core consists of three sections with three courtyards, flanked by twenty side rooms, symmetrically arranged north and south, connected by round archways and small gates. The complex integrates gardens, courtyards, and surrounding corridors into a harmonious whole. The grounds are home to famous trees and flowers such as Photinia serratifolia, ginkgo, osmanthus, camellia, golden larch, and banana plants. The exhibits inside focus on commemorating Zhu Xi and also display the natural scenery, cultural history, and literary artworks of Xian Du, as well as images of dinosaur fossils found in the area, offering visitors insights and enjoyment.

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units of Zhejiang Province