Former Residence of Zhao Zhishen

Former Residence of Zhao Zhishen

The Former Residence of Zhao Zhishen is a cultural relic protection unit of Shandong Province.

Located within Courtyard No. 17, Chengdong Village, Boshan District. The residence was initially built in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties by his great-grandfather Zhao Zhenye. Originally, it was an official’s residence featuring three courtyards, over 50 rooms, and covering an area of 1,362 square meters. It has now been entirely converted into residential housing. The main gate of the residence faces south and features a flush gable roof, with dougong (bracket sets) both front and back, each supported by four pillars. It spans three bays (11.2 meters) in width and one bay (7.1 meters) in depth. The structure has a stone base and brick walls, with a wooden frame. There is one wing room on each of the east and west sides. On either side of the gate, there used to be a pair of stone lions, which no longer exist.

The main gate of the residence faces south and features a flush gable roof, with dougong (bracket sets) both front and back, each supported by four pillars. It spans three bays (11.2 meters) in width and one bay (7.1 meters) in depth. The structure has a stone base and brick walls, with a wooden frame. There is one wing room on each of the east and west sides. On either side of the gate, there used to be a pair of stone lions, which no longer exist. Inside the gate lies the front courtyard of the residence, covering an area of 260 square meters. The center originally housed a three-bay hall called “Baoyin Hall,” which served as a reception area. The middle courtyard is 14 meters long and 11.3 meters wide, with two-story buildings made of stone foundations and blue bricks on the east, west, and north sides. These buildings have flush gable roofs and clay tiles, totaling 18 rooms. The central north building is called “Hanxin Pavilion” (also known as “Qingzhi Pavilion”), which was once the residence of Zhao Jinmei. To the east of the middle courtyard, there used to be a family garden called “Xiaoyinyuan,” belonging to the Zhao family. Part of it has been converted into residential housing, and part has been turned into the Boshan District Government Clinic.

The rear courtyard of the residence is square-shaped, measuring 12 meters on each side. The main building in the center is called “Guangqi Gate,” commonly known as the “Five-Storey Building,” although it actually has only four floors. It has a flush gable roof and clay tiles, spans three bays (11.1 meters) in width and one bay (5.85 meters) in depth, and has a stone base, brick walls, and a wooden frame. On the lintel of the second-floor doorway of this building, there is an inscribed stone plaque bearing three regular script characters “Guangqi Gate” in intaglio, with the signature “Early Summer, 1656 (the Shunzhi reign period).” Due to years of disrepair, the urban construction authorities have demolished the top two floors, leaving only the second floor, which has been reinforced and repurposed as residential housing. The east and west sides of the rear courtyard feature two-story blue-brick buildings consistent in style with the “Guangqi Gate,” which have also been converted into residences.

Zhao Zhishen (1662–1744) was a Qing dynasty poet, poetry theorist, and calligrapher. His courtesy name was Shenfu, and his art name was Qiugu; in his later years, he also went by the names Yishan Laoren and Zhiru Laoren. He was from Boshan, Zibo City, Shandong Province. He passed the county-level imperial examination (xiucai) at the age of 14, the provincial-level examination (juren) at 17, and the national-level examination (jinshi) at 18. Later, he served as Right Attendant (Youshanfang Youshan Shan) and concurrently as an editorial official (Hanjian) at the Hanlin Academy. At the age of 28, he was dismissed from office for watching Hong Sheng’s opera “The Palace of Eternal Life” during the mourning period for Empress Tong. For the next fifty years, he never held office again and spent his life wandering freely in nature. Zhao Zhishen was the nephew and son-in-law of Wang Shizhen, but his poetic views differed from Wang’s—he emphasized that “content should take precedence over language.” His poems and writings are profound and incisive... More details about Zhao Zhishen++

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units in Shandong Province