Zhoucun Ancient Commercial City

Zhoucun Ancient Commercial City

Zhoucun Ancient Commercial City is a national AAAA-level tourist attraction, a Shandong Provincial cultural relics protection unit, and a patriotic education base.

The Zhoucun Ancient Commercial City scenic area is situated in Zhoucun District, Zibo City, Shandong Province, and is known by titles such as "Dry Port," "Golden Zhoucun," "Hometown of Silk," and "The Number One Village Under Heaven." It covers a total area of 60.5 hectares, and is currently a provincial-level key cultural relics protection unit and a national AAAA-level tourist attraction. It mainly consists of ancient streets including Dajie, Sishijie, and Yinzi Shijie (Silver Market Street), featuring over 50,000 square meters of well-preserved Ming and Qing dynasty architecture.

The scenic area boasts numerous historical sites, crisscrossing streets, numerous shops, and diverse architectural styles that blend Chinese and Western cultures. This unique combination is rare in northern China and unmatched in Shandong. Moreover, the area still serves its commercial functions today. Experts from the China Ancient Architecture Protection Committee have praised it as a "living museum cluster of ancient commercial streets and buildings in China."

Currently, the area has formed over 10 engaging and educational attractions, including the Thousand Buddha Temple Complex, Sanyitang Printing Exhibition Hall, Qianxiangyi, Ruifuxiang, Historical Culture Exhibition Hall, Silk Culture Experience Hall, British-American Tobacco Company Exhibition Hall, Today No Tax Stele, Zhuangyuan Mansion (Number One Scholar’s Residence), Ticket Certificate Museum, Banknote Exhibition Hall, Yang Family Courtyard, Grand Dye House, Kuixing Pavilion Temple Complex, and Zibo Art Museum.

Zhoucun boasts rich cultural resources. Pu Songling, a renowned Qing Dynasty novelist and hailed as the “King of Short Stories in the World,” taught and wrote in Xipu Village, Wangcun Town for 33 years — the birthplace of his classic work Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. The popular CCTV TV series The Grand Dye Works is set in Zhoucun, while The Breaking of the Wilderness was filmed here. The TV drama Dry Port, which depicts the commercial development history of Zhoucun, was successfully broadcast on CCTV. The Zhoucun Ancient Commercial City scenic area warmly welcomes domestic and international visitors to explore its beautiful environment and high-quality services.

Having withstood centuries of history, Zhoucun Ancient Commercial City remains remarkably well-preserved. With its crisscrossing streets, bustling shops, and varied architectural styles, it has been lauded by experts from the China Ancient Architecture Protection Committee as a "living museum cluster of ancient commercial buildings in China" and holds significant value for tourism. Comprising ancient commercial streets such as Dajie, Sishijie, Yinzi Shijie, and Choushi Jie (Silk Market Street), it is now a municipal-level cultural relics protection unit, a provincial-level outstanding historical building, a key provincial tourism development project, and a national AAAA-level scenic spot. To the south of the ancient commercial city lies the former headquarters of the Shandong Provincial Anti-Yuan Constitutional Protection Army and the Kuixing Pavilion temple, while to the north stand the Mingjiao Temple, Thousand Buddha Pavilion, and Huilong Bridge. This area represents the convergence of Zhoucun’s natural and cultural heritage.

The main street of the ancient commercial city is also called Dajie. It is the largest and oldest commercial street in Zhoucun. Originally built during the Yongle era of the Ming Dynasty (around 1410 AD), its basic layout took shape by the ninth year of the Chongzhen era (1636 AD). Stretching approximately two Chinese miles (about 1000 meters) from the intersection of Sishijie and Yinzi Shijie in the south to Shuoyi Gate in the north, the street is bisected in the middle by Beiji Pavilion, dividing it into northern and southern sections. The currently preserved section is primarily the southern part, about 400 meters long.

By the late Qing Dynasty, the “Eight Great Xiang Brands” of the Meng family from Jiujiun, Zhangqiu successively set up shops here. Merchants from near and far flocked to the area, and Dajie gradually became a commercial hub dominated by fabric and general merchandise businesses. In the 30th year of the Guangxu reign (1904 AD), after Zhoucun was established as a treaty port, its commercial reach expanded significantly. Businesses from nearby cities like Qingdao and Jinan, as well as distant metropolises such as Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, all engaged in frequent trade here. The commercial prosperity of Dajie reached its peak, giving rise to the saying: “Dajie may not be big, but it brings in a fortune every day.”

Zhoucun has long been a hub of commercial culture, steeped in the heritage of ancient trading ports and northern folk traditions. Known as “The Number One Village Under Heaven” and “Golden Zhoucun,” it features crisscrossing ancient streets, bustling marketplaces, and abundant relics. Recognized by experts from the China Ancient Architecture Committee as a “living museum cluster of ancient commercial buildings in China,” the scenic area centers around three main ancient streets: Dajie, Sishijie, and Yinzi Shijie. Attractions such as the Grand Dye House, Silk Museum, Folklore Exhibition Hall, Zhuangyuan Mansion, Zibo Art Museum, Yang Family Courtyard, Sanyitang Bookstore, Thousand Buddha Temple, Kuixing Pavilion, and the Today No Tax Stele further enrich the experience.

The Zhoucun Ancient Commercial City was developed under protective initiatives launched by the Zhoucun District Government starting in 2001. The scenic area opened to the public in 2004 and is managed by a wholly state-owned company established by the government.

Ancient human settlement ruins include Huangguding Site, located on the northern bank of the Fanyang River, about 20 Chinese miles southeast of Zhoucun, and Aiguo Site, found on the western bank of the Gan River in the southwestern suburbs of Zhoucun. These sites have yielded numerous artifacts such as black pottery shards, li tripod leg fragments, tile pieces, floor bricks, dou stems, stone tools, red pottery, jar rims, ding tripod legs, vessel lids, handles, bowls, basins, plates, dou vessels, stone axes, and animal bones. Both sites belong to the Longshan Culture period and extend into the Qin and Han dynasties. Approximately 20 Chinese miles southeast of Zhoucun lies the Shangjia Site, where large amounts of red-fired soil, pottery shards, tiles, decorative bricks, bones, tall-handled dou fragments, and mattocks have been excavated, dating back to the Shang, Zhou, and Han periods. The ancient city of Tugu was established as the seat of Tugu County during the Western Han Dynasty, located about 21 kilometers southwest of present-day Zhoucun urban area, named after the local abundance of Tugu vines. It was later incorporated into Weiguo County during the Gaoqi era. After Tugu County was abolished, four villages were established around the old city, each named after the surnames of their residents, collectively referred to by locals as the Ancient City.

Location: No. 296, Zhoucun Street, Zhoucun District, Zibo City, Shandong Province

Rating: AAAA

Ticket: Free; some smaller attractions may charge fees

Phone: 0533-6436166

Opening Hours: 8:00–17:00

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units