Former Site of the Timber Guild Hall

Former Site of the Timber Guild Hall

The Former Site of the Timber Guild Hall is a cultural relic protection unit of Wenzhou City.

Yuhuan Hall is located north of Jiaochangtou Road and east of Xicheng Road Primary School in Lucheng District, Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province. It faces south and originally consisted of a gate tower, theater stage, side wings, and a main hall, though only the gate tower remains today. The gate tower is a two-story brick-and-timber hybrid structure with a hip-and-gable roof spanning seven bays. The central bay on the second floor features a caisson ceiling with bracket arms extending two tiers, and the beam framework combines both raised-beam and through-tenon styles. The north facade’s second-floor eave brackets are carved with interlocking scroll patterns, while the lower row features floral motifs. The south facade has a bluestone Sumeru pedestal at the base, with the waist section adorned with bas-relief carvings of auspicious floral designs using the "reduced-ground gold" and openwork techniques. Above the pedestal, the structure is built with plain bricks up to the second floor, finished with imitation wooden bracket sets and overhanging eaves. The central bay’s wall tapers inward to form a horse-hoof shape, with bluestone door frames. The vertical side posts are fitted with scrolling vine-patterned bracket arms supporting the lintel, while the side doors are arched, topped with three semi-circular bluestone arches. On the secondary, corner, and end bays, above the molded string courses, melon-shaped columns and seat brackets support three-tiered bracket sets, with the roof finished with plain brick eaves and square brick flying rafters. The central bay’s molded string courses above imitate a wooden triple-gable structure, supported by three layers of melon posts, dougong blocks, and seat brackets carrying the second-floor purlins, collar ties — with the upper collar ties being curved. The top-layer seat brackets also support three-tiered bracket sets, matching those on the secondary, corner, and end bays. On the east and west sides of the gate tower’s base, one boundary stone inscribed with “Timber Guild Hall” is embedded on each side. Yuhuan Hall was established during the Guangxu era of the Qing Dynasty by local timber merchants and community members as a venue for discussing important guild affairs and formulating regulations. It was registered during the third provincial cultural relics survey in August 2001.

Period: Qing Dynasty

Date of Designation: June 11, 2010

Category: Ancient Architecture

Protected Area: Extending 2 meters outward from the existing gable walls on the east and west, and 5 meters outward from the existing walls on the south and north.

Building Control Zone: Extending 50 meters outward from the protected area.

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of Municipal-Level Cultural Relics Protection Units in Wenzhou City