Mizong Ancestral Hall in Wuwei County

Mizong Ancestral Hall in Wuwei County

Mizong Ancestral Hall is a national AA-level tourist attraction, a cultural heritage site protected by Anhui Province, and a patriotic education base.

Originally named Baojinzhai, Mizong Ancestral Hall is located in the northwest corner of Wuwei County. It was built in the third year of the Chongning era (1104 AD) during the Northern Song Dynasty by the renowned calligrapher and painter Mi Fu, who served as the military governor of Wuwei at the time. Mi Fu admired the calligraphy of the Jin Dynasty. After obtaining the authentic works of Wang Xizhi’s “Wanglue Tie,” Xie An’s “August 5th Tie,” and Wang Xianzhi’s “December Tie,” he personally named his study Baojinzhai to house the calligraphic works of the Jin masters. In front of the study, he dug an Ink Pond, in the center of which stands a small pavilion called Touxian Pavilion — the place where Mi Fu read and practiced calligraphy. Legend has it that one night, the croaking of frogs in the pond disturbed Mi Fu’s concentration. He picked up an inkstone, carved the character “止” (meaning “stop”) on it, and threw it into the pond. The frog noises instantly ceased. Since then, the water in the pond turned blackish, hence the name “Ink Pond,” while the ancient pavilion in the pond became known as “Touxian Pavilion.” To the north of the pond lies a stone figure called “Shizhang” (also known as Baishi, meaning “worshiping the stone”), a delicately shaped Taihu rock made of limestone. According to the “History of the Song Dynasty · Biography,” “When Mi Yuanzhang (Mi Fu’s courtesy name) governed Ruxu (Wuwei County), he heard of a strange stone by the Ruxu River, whose origin was unknown. People found it peculiar and dared not take it. The governor ordered it to be moved to the prefectural office as an object of leisure. When the stone arrived, he immediately set up a mat and bowed before it in the courtyard, saying, ‘I have wanted to pay homage to my stone brother for twenty years.’ Some accused him of this act, and he was dismissed from office because of it.” Mi Fu brought back a peculiar stone from the banks of the Ruxu River, placed it in front of his courtyard, and bowed to it in a highly reverent manner, even addressing it as his elder brother — certainly an eccentric act. This led to his impeachment and dismissal. The stone he worshipped is now preserved within the grounds of Mizong Ancestral Hall.

The original study was destroyed in war. It was reconstructed twice, once in the second year of the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty and again in the first year of the Qianlong era of the Qing Dynasty. In the 37th year of Qianlong’s reign, the county magistrate Zhang Gongqiao had Chen Hongshou’s painting of the “Baishi” (worshiping the stone) scene engraved on a stele. In the 39th year, Magistrate Zhang Kunyu built the Baishi Pavilion, Calligraphy and Painting Boat, and Xiangyue Pavilion, and inscribed his own account on stone. In the first year of the Xianfeng era of the Qing Dynasty, it was again destroyed in war. In the Dingyou year of the Guangxu era, County Magistrate Wang Jun renovated it once more, constructing the three-bay Mizong Ancestral Hall with the main gate in the center. On both sides of the pond, he added three side rooms, enclosed the area with an earthen wall interspersed with bamboo fences, and built artificial hills along the contours of the pond. He also collected Mi Fu’s inscribed stones “Ink Pond” and “Painted Vegetables,” along with other stone engravings, and moved them into the ancestral hall. In 2004, Mizong Ancestral Hall underwent another comprehensive restoration. Currently, the site features attractions such as Mizong Ancestral Hall, Baojinzhai, Jushange Pavilion, Ink Pond, Touxian Pavilion, Xinghua Spring Well, Hongyu Pavilion, the Worshipped Stone, Fuyu Peak, Wenshufeng Peak, Deep Bamboo Grove, and Lingzhi Stone. The ancestral hall also houses over 150 stone inscriptions by master calligraphers from the Jin and Tang dynasties onward — extremely precious artifacts of high historical, cultural, and calligraphic value, and considered a veritable treasure trove of ancient calligraphy art. Mizong Ancestral Hall is now a key provincial cultural relic protection unit and a national 2A-level scenic spot.

Mi Fu, courtesy name Yuanzhang, also known as Xiangyang Jushi (Hermit of Xiangyang) and Haiyue Shanren (Mountain Man of Haiyue), among other names. Of Han ethnicity, he later relocated to Xiangyang in Hubei and spent much of his life in Runzhou (present-day Zhenjiang, Jiangsu).

Mi Fu’s great-great-great-grandfather was Mi Xin, a meritorious official from the early Song Dynasty. His ancestors for several generations held military positions. His father, named Zuo with the courtesy name Guangfu, served as a military commander up to the rank of General of the Imperial Guards. His mother, Lady Yan, had been the wet nurse of Empress Gao, consort of Emperor Yingzong of Song (Zhao Shu).

Mi Fu once held the positions of Proofreader, Doctor of Calligraphy and Painting, and Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites. He was skilled in poetry, excelled in calligraphy, and mastered various scripts including seal, clerical, regular, running, and cursive scripts. He was especially adept at imitating ancient calligraphy to the point of near indistinguishability.

Initially apprenticed to a certain scholar... More details about Mi Fu ++