Yubei Ancient Village

Yubei Ancient Village

Yubei Ancient Village is located in Yantan, a major town in northern Yongjia, over 60 kilometers from the county seat and bordering the national-level forest park Sihai Mountain. The village is surrounded by mountains on three sides and faces water on one, with lush green peaks, a tranquil environment, and beautiful scenery. Towering pines and cypresses, graceful bamboos, and dense forests abound. It is embraced by surrounding peaks—Jinshan, Xishan, Yushan, Yangshan, and Heshangshan—like lotus petals encircling the entire village.

The residential architecture of Yubei features strong local characteristics, with a cohesive overall design. Most houses face east and are built in traditional styles. Over 85% of the existing residential buildings are ancient structures, with clear distinctions between new and old areas. The layouts of the houses vary, including linear, H-shaped, square, and rectangular configurations. All rooftops are of the hanging gable type, adorned with plain flower ridges. The ridges curve gently, rising slightly at both ends, with gently sloped surfaces and a subtle rise, creating an elegant and expansive look. They are covered with gray clay tiles, and the gables are broad. Some roofs are designed to resemble hip-and-gable styles. Most houses have two stories, with a waist eave on the upper floor that gives the appearance of double eaves. The depth of the houses is considerable, with far-reaching eaves but no flying eaves. Typically, a covered corridor is set beneath the eaves, extending as deep as two meters. The buildings are generally arranged around three or four courtyards.

Yubei Village has a meticulously planned and well-organized layout. There are nine fortified gates, two sets of village walls, and a protective moat encircling the village, along with seven bridges of various sizes. In the past, the village had seven ancestral halls, among which the Shangshu Hall (the grand ancestral hall of the Wang clan), originally built in 1186 during the Southern Song Dynasty (the 13th year of the Chunxi reign), is the most renowned. There are also over 30 ancient residences and more than 40 quadrangle courtyard mansions, each with an elegant “hall” name. Each “hall” also served as a workshop closely connected to the daily lives of the villagers.

Yubei Village is one of the better-preserved ancient villages in the Nanxi River basin, with ancient buildings accounting for 95% of the total village structures. These preserve a wealth of stone carving, wood carving, and brick carving artistry. The villagers built the walls using pebbles, mountain stones, and strip stones. Walls, screens, and exterior house walls were decorated with pebbles arranged into various patterns and motifs, laid out across courtyards, lanes, and roads. Additionally, nearly every ancient residence in the village has its own unique name, which is extremely rare among the ancient villages of the Nanxi River region.

The entire village resembles a paradise as depicted by Tao Yuanming. Yubei Village also boasts historical sites such as the “Lotus Tomb” of the Xu ancestors, the “Old Madam Tomb” of the Wang clan, Fengshui Hill, the Xiancun Hall where Xie Wenjin, founder of the Wenzhou Independent Branch of the Chinese Communist Party, carried out revolutionary work, the Zhongshoutang, the former site of the Ou’bei County Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, and the Yubei Armed Uprising Memorial Pavilion.