Shaoxing Zhongshu Mansion

Shaoxing Zhongshu Mansion

Shaoxing Zhongshu Mansion is a cultural heritage site protected by Fujian Province.

Shaoxing Zhongshu Mansion: Located at No. 3, Daojia Lane, Huaguang Community Committee, Zhaoyang Subdistrict, Shaowu City, Nanping, Fujian Province, the mansion is a brick-and-wood structure facing south and has a square layout. From west to east, it successively features Ming Dynasty residences, a garden, and Qing Dynasty residential buildings. The Ming Dynasty building itself is a three-courtyard compound. It has a total width of 15.9 meters, a total depth of 80.3 meters, and covers an area of 1,276.77 square meters. Along the central axis from front to back are the main gate, entrance hall, courtyard, front hall, courtyard, main hall, decorative screen wall (taishi bi), courtyard, and rear hall. The area in front of the main gate is enclosed by a screen wall to form a courtyard. The main gate is a brick-and-stone structure with the three characters “中书第” (Zhongshu Mansion) inscribed in relief on the lintel, which is also adorned with brick carvings featuring floral patterns. The entrance hall has a flush gable roof and a post-and-lintel structure, with a rolled shed roof over the front porch. The courtyard is flanked by side rooms with single-slope roofs. The front hall has a flush gable roof and a post-and-lintel-through-tenon structure, complete with front and rear porches. It is eight bays wide and five posts deep, with side rooms of single-slope roofs on either side of the courtyard. The taishi bi houses a shrine. The main hall also has a flush gable roof and a post-and-lintel-through-tenon structure. It is eight bays wide and five posts deep, with single-slope-roofed side rooms along the courtyard. The rear hall has a flush gable roof and a post-and-lintel-through-tenon structure, with front and rear porches; the front porch has a rolled shed roof. It is six bays wide and six posts deep, with 0-, a taishi bi, and side rooms of single-slope roofs. The courtyard floors are paved with strip stones and river pebbles. The interior floors are covered with square bricks. The garden is a modern structure.

The Qing Dynasty residential building has a total width of 14 meters, a total depth of 31.4 meters, and covers an area of 440 square meters. The structure is a two-courtyard compound. Along the central axis from front to back are the main gate, entrance hall, screen partition, courtyard, main hall, courtyard, and rear hall. The main gate is a brick-and-stone structure designed like a four-pillar, three-door memorial archway. The lintel features a stone plaque inscribed in intaglio regular script with the four characters “文明气象” (Civilized Ambience). The lintel is also inlaid with brick carvings of various floral and animal motifs. The entrance hall has a flush gable roof and a post-and-lintel-through-tenon structure, with a rolled shed roof over the front porch. The courtyard is flanked by side rooms with single-slope roofs. The main hall has a flush gable roof and a post-and-lintel-through-tenon structure, complete with front and rear porches. It is six bays wide and six posts deep, with single-slope-roofed side rooms on both sides of the courtyard. The taishi bi houses a shrine. The rear hall has a flush gable roof and a post-and-lintel-through-tenon structure. It is six bays wide and four posts deep, with single-slope-roofed side rooms on either side of the courtyard and 0-, as well as a taishi bi. The courtyard floor is paved with strip stones, and the interior is covered with square bricks.

This Zhongshu Mansion is a provincially protected cultural heritage site. Its structure is intact, the beams and frames are stable, and the brick carvings and window decorations are exquisitely crafted with rich patterns, providing valuable reference material for the study of architectural styles from the Ming and Qing periods.

Source: Nanping Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism