Fuzhou Hunan Guild Hall

Fuzhou Hunan Guild Hall

The Fuzhou Hunan Guild Hall is a cultural heritage site protected by Gulou District.

The Hunan Guild Hall was originally located within the grounds of Fuzhou No. 18 Middle School in Baoding Lane, Gulou District, Fuzhou City, but has now been relocated to Yangqiao Middle School. Built during the Qing Dynasty, it faces south and is enclosed by brick firewalls on all sides, with large stone slabs covering the wall bases, about 2 meters high. The main gate features a tall stone frame, over 1 meter wide and more than 2 meters high. Upon entering, there is a courtyard, above which originally stood a double-eave pavilion with intricate bracketing—unfortunately, it has been demolished. The main hall is a single-bay structure with three bays in width and seven columns in depth, featuring a front corridor and rear hall. It uses a reduced-column method, with wooden pillars so thick they can be embraced with both arms, resting on blue stone column bases adorned with floral carvings. The bracketing is exquisitely crafted; the beams are about 8 meters long and feature exquisite wood carvings.

Inscription by Zuo Zongtang at the Fuzhou Hunan Guild Hall: “From Ou and Yue through Meizhou and Xun, still bearing the envoy’s seal o’er maritime lands; From Qin and Long pointing to Shule, yet in Rongcheng it’s hometown one regards.” This couplet was written by Zuo in 1884 while overseeing military affairs in Fujian. The upper line refers to southeastern defense, the lower to northwestern campaigns, expressing the sentiment of never forgetting one’s homeland no matter where one serves.