The Yu Crab-Shaped Old House

The Yu Crab-Shaped Old House

The Yu Crab-Shaped Old House is a cultural relic protection unit of Anhui Province.

The Yu Crab-Shaped Old House is located in Shengli Group, Jianjun Village, Yujing Town, Qianshan County, Anqing City, Anhui Province.

The house was originally built in the early Qing Dynasty, facing east with its back to the west, and is named after the crab-like shape of its foundation. The entrance hall and central hall of the house are slightly offset to the left, while the central hall to the rear hall is aligned along a central axis. Both sides of the central and rear halls are connected to the wing rooms via arched doorways, and the entrance hall is linked to the central hall by a fireproof wall. Courtyards with skywells are situated between the front and rear halls. The brickwork around the courtyards features exquisitely crafted “sealing walls” (referred to as “screen walls” on the facade), with their base moldings, water-washed surfaces, and protruding decorative borders. The central hall is spacious, spanning three bays in width and eight rafters in depth, with a boat-shaped canopy in the front porch and interlocking corridors in the rear eaves to increase the depth. Inside the hall, five-rafter beams combine both the raised-beam and through-tenon construction methods, with an open-timbered ceiling. The brackets between the beams are carved with cloud motifs. Overall, the column and beam work, as well as the refined brick craftsmanship of the Yu Crab-Shaped Old House, exhibit distinct architectural features of southern Anhui.

The wooden frame of the Yu Crab-Shaped Old House’s flat hall uses the most common southern Yangtze River techniques known as “along-beam stringers” and “along-body stringers.” These stringers, together with architraves, secondary beams, purlin connectors, and columns, form a bracing system that resists horizontal forces such as wind and seismic pressure. This design gives the wooden framework excellent resistance to wind and earthquakes, and holds high scientific research value.

Protected area: with the center point at the midpoint of the drip wall outside the main gate, extending 30 meters westward, 27 meters eastward, and northward to the drip wall of the rear hall.

Construction control zone: 20 meters outside the protected area.

Jianjun Village: Located at the border between Qianshan and Huai counties, Jianjun Village currently has 15 villager groups, a population of over 2,000, and covers an area of approximately 4.6 square kilometers, including about 4 square kilometers of grain fields and 0.6 square kilometers of cultivated land.

The village has complete water conservancy facilities, with the Wanle Reservoir to the east and irrigation and drainage stations to the south. In recent years, the village has developed thousands of mu of cotton fields, and the per capita income of farmers has quadrupled compared to previous years.

The transportation industry has developed rapidly, with cement roads extending throughout the village, providing convenient access. In terms of scenic spots and historical sites, the historic Grand Earth Temple and Pudu Chan Temple are located here... More details about Jianjun Village ++

Further reading:

· The Fifth Batch of Municipal-Level Cultural Relic Protection Units in Anqing City