Shuibei Pavilion

Shuibei Pavilion

Shuibei Pavilion is a cultural heritage site under the protection of Haishu District.

Shuibei Pavilion was the private library of Xu Sidong, a renowned scholar and bibliophile from eastern Zhejiang during the Qing Dynasty. Its original location was at No. 18 Huachi Lane, outside West Gate, Haishu District.

Xu Sidong, courtesy name Dingyu, also known as Tongshu, styled himself Danzhai and used the aliases Xihu Waishi and Liubiquan. Gifted and studious from a young age, he inherited several thousand volumes of books from his family, which he found insufficient, so he continued to expand his collection. His original reading place was near Moon Lake, first named Lianhu Tower, also called Yanyu Tower, where he accumulated 60,000 volumes of books. It was destroyed in the 11th year of the Xianfeng reign (1861). In the first year of the Tongzhi reign, he moved to Chengxi Cottage outside West Gate, amassing another 50,000 to 60,000 volumes, which unfortunately perished in a great fire in the second year of the Tongzhi reign. The following year, he rebuilt a new residence on the former site of Chengxi Cottage and continued collecting books. Since there was a river beside the tower and the building was located north of the river, he named the new library “Shuibei Pavilion,” meaning “north of the river,” with the intent of preventing fires.

The pavilion faces south and has three bays with a wooden structure. In 1994, due to urban expansion making on-site preservation impossible, it was relocated to Tianyige. In 1999, it was turned into the “China Local Chronicles Rare Book Collection,” dedicated to collecting new local chronicles.

Xu Sidong (1814–1873), a famous bibliophile of the Qing Dynasty. His courtesy name was Dingyu, also known as Tongshu, and he styled himself Liubiquan and used the aliases Xihu Waishi and Danchan. Also called Dantuo or Danzhai, he was known among scholars as “Mr. Liubiquan.” A native of Yin County, he passed the imperial provincial examination in 1846 (26th year of the Daoguang reign) but failed twice in the metropolitan examinations, after which he ceased taking the exams. Later, he was appointed as an Imperial Secretariat Drafter for contributing to military supplies. Diligent in study and widely read, he focused his classical studies on pre-Qin doctrines and interpreted classics through Confucian scholarship. His works include classical poetry and prose. He extensively collected literature and published the “Six Chronicles of Song and Yuan from Siming,” considered a fine edition. In 1868 (7th year of the Tongzhi reign), he initiated the Ningbo Chronicles project... More details about Xu Sidong++

Yuexiu Subdistrict: Established in 1992, Yuexiu Subdistrict of Haishu District is located in downtown Ningbo. It stretches from Jiefang Road in the east to Changchun Road in the west, neighbors the five-star Nanyuan Hotel to the south, and borders Zhongshan Road to the north. It was formed by merging the former county school, Huxi, and Cangqiao subdistricts. The area covers 2.07 square kilometers, with 16,492 resident households and a population of 41,775, divided into seven community committees. The district boasts a long history and rich cultural heritage, including the “Nanyue Book City” Tianyige—the oldest private library in Asia—and the historic Buddhist site Jushilin (Lay Buddhists’ Forest)... More details about Yuexiu Subdistrict++