Jiqing Lou

Jiqing Lou

Jiqing Lou is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Jiqing Lou is located by the stream on the north side of Chuxi Village, at an altitude of over 500 meters, about 30 meters above the stream level, in a strategically elevated position. This circular earthen building has two rings, was constructed during the Yongle era of the Ming Dynasty (1403–1424), faces south and sits north, covering an area of 2,826 square meters. The central axis of the building from north to south includes the courtyard, building gate, entrance hall, atrium, inner ring and passageways between the inner and outer rings, atrium, ancestral hall, and backyard. The building gate features a stone lintel with an inset couplet: “Gathering benefits all stems from humility and love; Celebrations arise solely through the pursuit of virtue.” The horizontal plaque reads: “Material splendor and celestial treasure.” The thick door leaves are reinforced with iron plates, and a fireproof water trough is installed above to effectively guard against arson attacks.

The outer ring is built with a combination of earth and wood, has a diameter of 66 meters, and stands four stories high. The ground floor has 53 bays, while the second floor and above each have 56 bays. The ground floor walls are 1.6 meters thick and lack a stone foundation; later generations added a 1-meter-high stone facing with pebbles to the exterior wall to prevent the earthen walls from being soaked by roof runoff. When the building was constructed, only one staircase—wider than those in other tulou—was installed, located on the east side of the entrance hall, leading up to the fourth floor. The ground floor was used for kitchens, and no windows were opened on the ground or second floors; the second floor served as granary space, while the third floor and above were used for bedrooms.

Originally, the outer ring’s first to fourth floors had an interior corridor layout. In the ninth year of the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty (1744), during a renovation to address the inconvenience caused by hundreds of residents sharing a single staircase and to facilitate management, slight modifications were made to the original structure: the ground floor remained an interior corridor style, but the floors above were changed to a unit-based layout, with each unit consisting of six rooms and its own staircase. These staircases were relatively narrow, and on the third floor, each unit had a small shrine installed beside its staircase. The corridors between units were separated by fir wood panels. On the ground floor, each unit had a stone-paved passage raised above the atrium, connecting to the house spaces of the inner ring owned by individual households. On the outer ring’s second floor and above, a hidden staircase 50 centimeters wide was added beside the stairwell of each unit, close to the outer wall. Normally covered with wooden boards, these secret stairs were virtually undetectable to outsiders but could be used in emergencies.

The outer ring’s fourth-floor exterior features nine watchtowers, constructed of wood and cantilevered outward, serving both observational and defensive purposes. The watchtower above the main gate provides a direct view of the village entrance and overlooks the main passageway, enabling the defenders to hold the building securely thanks to its strategic elevation. This emphasis on fortification arose because Chuxi Village is situated deep in the mountains, where bandits and wild animals were frequently encountered at the time.

At the back of the building on the ground floor, there is also a secret passage. A gap measuring 1 meter in height, 1.6 meters in length, and 0.7 meters in width is reserved in the outer wall of a room, sealed off with rammed earth that matches the surrounding wall, making it virtually undetectable. The gap is recessed inward and normally covered with wooden boards, so even if someone enters the room, the secret remains hidden. In case of emergency evacuation, residents can quickly break through this passage and escape to the hillside behind the building, hiding within the forest.

The inner ring is separated from the outer ring by an atrium, and the passage between the entrance hall and the inner ring is paved with bluestone slabs. The inner ring is single-story, with a brick-and-wood structure. It features stone-paved passageways about 3 meters wide and raised above the atrium, connecting to the interior corridors of the outer ring on the front, back, and both sides. There are 26 rooms, including dining areas and storage spaces. Rooms are divided by fir wood panels, with the lower meter of the front and back walls made of blue bricks, and the upper sections clad in fir wood boards. Every one or two rooms have front and back doors; the front doors face the ancestral hall, while the back doors connect to the ground floor of the outer ring. Both the inner and outer rings feature double-sloped tiled roofs with a mixed wooden frame structure of post-and-lintel and Dougong (bracket sets).

The ancestral hall is located at the center of the building, square-shaped, single-story, and built with a combination of earth and wood. It is enclosed by the hall at the back, corridors on both sides of the hall, and the front corridor, with an atrium in the middle. The front door of the hall faces the building’s main gate. The hall is spacious and houses a shrine, with a small door on each side for access. It features a hip-and-gable roof and a mixed wooden frame structure of post-and-lintel and Dougong.

The ground-floor corridors, atriums inside the building, and the courtyard outside the building are all paved with pebbles.

Time Needed

2 hours

Transportation

Xiamen – Xiayang Town: From Xiamen Hubin South Road Long-Distance Bus Station, there are direct buses to Xiayang starting from early morning around 6:00 AM until 12:30 PM. The route goes through Xiamen – Zhangzhou – Nanjing – Xiayang, with the entire journey taking about 6 hours.

Ticket

The Chuxi Tulou Cluster ticket is 70 RMB per person, which includes Jiqing Lou, Shengqing Lou, Shanqing Lou, Gengqing Lou, Gongqing Lou, and the Museum.

Opening Hours

7:00-19:00

Location

Chuxi Village, Xiayang Town, Yongding County, Longyan City, Fujian Province

Chuxi Village: Chuxi Village is under the jurisdiction of Yongding County, Longyan City, Fujian Province, bordering Luxi Town, Pinghe County, Zhangzhou. It is 15 kilometers away from Xiayang Town. Located upstream of the Chuxi River, hence originally named “Crude Stream Village.” Surrounded by mountains and embraced by clear waters, the village features lush pines and bamboos on the hills and terraced fields behind the buildings. The Chuxi Tulou Cluster consists of five round tulou and dozens of square tulou. Nestled against mountains and near water, they are laid out in a well-arranged and highly aesthetic composition. Among them, Jiqing Lou is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit, the oldest existing tulou in Yongding (dating back to the Ming and Qing dynasties), and also the most uniquely structured (with 72 staircases) … More details about Chuxi Village ++

Chuxi Tulou Cluster

Fanqing Lou

Gengqing Lou

Huaqing Lou

Gongqing Lou

Xiqing Lou

Shengqing Lou

Fuqing Lou

Yuqing Building

Shanqing Building