Ancestral Hall of the Du Clan

Ancestral Hall of the Du Clan

The Ancestral Hall of the Du Clan is a cultural relic protection unit of Anhui Province.

The Ancestral Hall of the Du Clan is located in Maotan Village, Maotan Township, Guichi District, Chizhou City.

It is a Han Chinese ancestral hall building originally built during the Ming Dynasty, serving as a place for the Han people to worship ancestors and esteemed figures. The Ancestral Hall of the Du Clan is the founding ancestral temple of the Du family who migrated to Guichi. The Du surname was ranked first among the four major surnames in ancient Guichi — Du, Li, Jiang, and Zhang. According to the *Genealogy of the Du Clan*: the ancestors of the Du family originally bore the surname Qi and were descendants of Emperor Yao. During the Yu dynasty, they were known as the Tao Tang clan; in the Xia dynasty, as the Yu Long clan; in the Shang dynasty, as the Shi Wei clan; and in the Zhou dynasty, as the Tang Du clan. After King Cheng of Zhou destroyed the State of Tang and enfeoffed his younger brother Shu Yu, the latter’s descendants were relocated to Ducheng (modern-day Jingzhao, Shaanxi) in Du County. By the Han Dynasty, Du Gu, serving as the Grand Master of Ceremonies in the Western Han, became a distant ancestor of the Du clan. For several hundred years spanning the Han, Wei, Jin, and Tang dynasties, generations of the Du family served as officials. In the fourth year of the Huichang era (844 AD) during the Tang Dynasty, Du Mu was appointed Prefect of Chizhou. By the eighteenth year of the Hongwu era (1385 AD) in the Ming Dynasty, Du Shaoxian migrated from Taiping to Maotan in Guichi. Du Shaoxian is regarded as the founding ancestor of the Du family in Maotan, Guichi. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, descendants of the Du family achieved remarkable scholarly and official success, producing imperial examination top-scorers, military degree holders awarded official posts, Hanlin academicians, ministers, grand masters of ceremonies, and more. The ancestral hall records the glory and traditions of the family and serves as its sacred hall. As a symbol and emblem of the long history and traditional culture of the Han people, it holds unparalleled influence and historical value.

Protected area: From the main gate of the ancestral hall southward to the pond 8 meters away, extending 3 meters outward on the east and west sides, and 2 meters north.

Construction control zone: 5 meters outward on the east, west, and north sides beyond the protected area, and 20 meters south.