Late Qing Dynasty Manor

Late Qing Dynasty Manor

A representative and exemplary work of late Ming and early Qing architectural art — the Late Qing Dynasty Manor — is located in Huanglong Shuitianfan Village, Langhe Town, Danjiangkou City. Built in the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican period, it took ten years to complete. The manor faces 42.2 meters wide from the front and extends 36.4 meters in depth, with a total construction area of 1,118.21 square meters and over a hundred rooms of varying sizes.

The Late Qing Dynasty Manor faces northwest and southeast, laid out in the traditional style of ancient Chinese architecture, and is divided into the main structure and auxiliary buildings. The main structure served as the primary area for the owner’s receptions and living quarters. It follows a central axis, beginning with the main gate leading into the front courtyard, patio, central hall (main room), and then to the rear courtyard, patio, and bedrooms. Symmetrical wing rooms line both sides, laid out entirely according to the traditional Chinese architectural concept of “stepping into the hall and then the inner chambers.” The auxiliary buildings were designed to complement the functions of the main structure. To the right of the main building lies a 293.4-square-meter space consisting of a garden and other amenities, dedicated to providing the owner with a place for rest and receiving guests. On the right side of the manor’s main gate stands a four-story watchtower, with observation holes and gun ports on the second floor up to the top floor, enhancing the manor’s self-defense capabilities. The architecture of the manor is exquisite, using Qing-style construction techniques, and rooms were designed and built according to hierarchy and seniority.

The watchtower has a hip-and-gable roof tiled with four-cornered ridges, while the rest feature small blue tiles with flush gable roofs. The central hall (main room) uses a small-scale wooden framework, while the others adopt a lifted-beam small wooden framework. The entire structure is richly carved, featuring brick carvings, stone carvings, and wood carvings. Many patterns are carved on various parts of the building such as column bases, drum stones, door sills, eave beams, spandrels, floor beams, and cantilevers. The cantilevers are carved with the “Eighteen Scholars Ascending to the Immortal Island” in line engraving and relief techniques, while the eave beams and floor beams feature openwork and line carvings depicting the “Three Officials and the God of Longevity,” “The Fight at the Crossroads,” “Liu Hai Chopping Firewood,” “The Butterfly Lovers (Liáng Shānbǒ and Zhù Yīngtái),” “Journey to the Capital for Imperial Examinations,” and “The Fortune, Prosperity, and Longevity” scenes, among others. Other areas are adorned with carvings of dragons, phoenixes, qilins, animals and plants, the Eight Treasures, and the Yin-Yang Taiji symbol. The decorative motifs include cloud patterns, dragon patterns, Chinese characters, scrolling vines, and thunder patterns. The manor extensively employs traditional Qing Dynasty carving techniques and craftsmanship, making it a rare physical artifact for the study of late Qing architectural carving arts.