Zhou Fu’s Official Reception Hall and the Zhou Family Ancestral Hall

Zhou Fu’s Official Reception Hall and the Zhou Family Ancestral Hall

Zhou Fu’s Official Reception Hall and the Zhou Family Ancestral Hall are protected cultural heritage sites of Anhui Province.

Zhou Fu’s Official Reception Hall and the Zhou Family Ancestral Hall are located in Dongzhi County.

Zhou Fu’s Official Reception Hall faces east and covers a construction area of 190 square meters. It features a mixed post-and-lintel and mortise-and-tenon structure, with a flush gable roof and ceramic tile covering, and a main ridge over one meter high. The Reception Hall consists of a gate tower and a two-story main building, housing a reception room, guest rooms, and other facilities with luxurious fittings. Inside the hall hangs an imperial plaque inscribed with: “At seventy, harmony in the household; five sons passing the imperial exams.” The “seventy” refers to the birthdays of Zhou Fu and his wife, while the “five sons” refer to their eldest son Xuehai, second son Xueming, fourth son Xuxi, seventh son Xueyuan, and ninth son Xuehui—all of whom achieved success in the imperial examinations as jinshi, juren, or biaogong. Another imperial plaque reads “Pure Governance in the South,” which praises Zhou Fu for his integrity while serving as Governor-General of Liangjiang and Liangguang. There is also a plaque gifted by local gentry, inscribed with “Benefiting the Hometown.” To the right of the Reception Hall are the buildings, garden, kitchen, and toilet of the Zhou family’s charitable school.

The Zhou Family Ancestral Hall is located about 150 meters west of the Reception Hall, facing north and covering a construction area of 109 square meters. It also features a mixed post-and-lintel and mortise-and-tenon structure. The front part is a “four waters returning to the hall” courtyard house, while the rear part has a flush gable roof with ceramic tile covering, almost identical in style to the Reception Hall. Both historic buildings were constructed by Zhou Fu during the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty. Zhou Fu was a high-ranking official in the late Qing period who assisted Li Hongzhang in managing foreign affairs for over 30 years. He served as the Minister of Commerce for the Beiyang region, Minister of the Army, and Governor-General of Liangjiang and Liangguang. The Reception Hall was used to receive distinguished officials. In the second year of the Xuantong reign (1910), Zhou Fu’s fourth son, Zhou Xuexi—then the Finance Minister of the Republic of China—rebuilt both structures in their original style. All beams, pillars, and brackets were made of reinforced concrete designed to resemble timber, including even the mortise and tenon joints, making these some of the earliest reinforced concrete timber-like buildings in China.

(1) Zhou Fu’s Official Reception Hall.

Protected Area: 10 meters to the east and south, 5.5 meters to the west, and extending to the main road to the north of the structure itself.

Construction Control Zone: 14 meters to the east, extending to the wall of Zhang Beiping’s residence to the south, 17 meters to the west, and 20 meters to the north of the protected area.

(2) Zhou Family Ancestral Hall.

Protected Area: 21 meters to the northwest at Zhou Qishu’s residence, 2.3 meters to the north at Zhou Liangcai’s house corner, 3.4 meters to the northeast at the eaves of Zhou Liangcai’s residence, 12.2 meters to the east at Hong Baiyu’s house corner, 6.1 meters to the southeast at Zheng Bairi’s residence, 4.3 meters to the south at Zhou Qihao’s residence and 7 meters at Zhou Changsheng’s residence, 11.6 meters to the southwest at the corner of Zhou Lianggen’s cottage, and 7.9 meters to the west at Zhou Lianggen’s stone wall.

Construction Control Zone: Extending 50 meters outward from the center at the Zhou Family Ancestral Hall.

(3) Zhou Fu’s Tomb.

Protected Area: 20 meters to the east, south, west, and north of Zhou Fu’s tomb and its spirit way.

Construction Control Zone: 20 meters to the south of the spirit way, 60 meters to the north of the tomb, extending to the hillside to the east of the tomb’s spirit way, and 60 meters to the west of the tomb’s spirit way.