Shitang Stone Houses

Shitang Stone Houses

The Shitang Stone Houses are a cultural heritage site protected by Wenling City.

Located on the southeastern coast of Wenling City, this is an ancient fishing village town, formerly known as Shitangshan and originally an island. According to the "Annals of Taizhou Prefecture": "Most embankments are built with mud, with few constructed from stone, but only this one is entirely built of stone, hence the name became the general term for the whole island." To the northwest, Shitang Town is backed by Shitang Mountain and surrounded by sea on three sides, boasting picturesque coastal scenery. The houses, roads, and pathways in the town are built along the natural terrain, featuring unique stone houses, stone streets, stone alleys, and stone steps. In the 1980s, Shitang gained fame for its fishing village stone houses. China Central Television once filmed a feature here titled "A Glimpse of the Fishing Village," which significantly boosted its publicity. Painters and photographers from all over the country came to capture its charm, much like how people often paint or sketch at Notre-Dame de Paris in France. Since these are also stone structures, artists began referring to Shitang as the “Notre-Dame of the East.” The Shitang stone houses became a central subject for these artists. The renowned painter Wu Guanzhong visited Shitang multiple times during the 1980s to sketch and created works such as "Shitang" and "Fishing Harbor," showcasing the enduring allure of the Shitang stone houses.

Shitang Town: A town under the jurisdiction of Wenling City. Established as Shitang Town in 1950, it was reorganized as a commune in 1958, reinstated as a town in 1959, and incorporated four villages from Shangma Township in 1992. It is located in the southeastern part of the city, at the southern tip of Songmen Peninsula, consisting of one peninsula and ten islets and reefs. With steep cliffs and deep harbors, it lies 27.2 kilometers from the municipal government. Covering an area of 15 square kilometers, it has a population of 38,000. The Linshi Highway runs through the port, where a national first-class fishing harbor is built. The town administers Liushuikeng, Huanhai, Haiyang, Cusha, Shanshitou, Changzheng, Changhai, Qingfeng, Gui’ao, Sanjian, Qianjin, Zhongshan, Xincun, Zhongxin, Haibin, Xindong... More details about Shitang Town++

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of Cultural Heritage Sites Protected by Zhejiang Province