Hexagonal Well

Hexagonal Well

Xiangyang Ancient Longzhong Scenic Area—The Hexagonal Well was the domestic well within the thatched cottage courtyard where Zhuge Liang lived and studied during his youth in Longzhong. According to the *Xiangyang Records* by Xi Zhuo, a historian of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, there was a well at Kongming’s former residence in Xiangyang, five zhang deep and five chi wide. The Hexagonal Well has not only become one of the traditional top ten cultural landscapes of Ancient Longzhong but also stands as physical evidence confirming the location of the thatched cottage.

“Before the hermitage lies an ancient well, said to have been dug in Han times. Used to clean kitchen ware, it connects spiritually to the springs below. A fragrant stream flows from its single vein, its legacy enduring for a thousand years. On fine nights, it holds the bright moon, its light clear under the six-angled sky.” This is a poem about the “Hexagonal Well” written by Wu Shou, the Jingnan Circuit Observer during the Ming Dynasty’s Chenghua era, in his *Ten Scenes of Longzhong Poems*. According to relevant records, two people wrote poems about the Ten Scenes of Longzhong during the Ming Dynasty: Wu Shou and the scholar-official Wang Yue. One poem is in five-character verse, the other in seven-character verse. Regardless of poetic merit, both have left modern people with an important piece of information: by the Ming Dynasty, Longzhong had already developed into a scenic area comprising ten sites.

The Hexagonal Well is first mentioned in Xi Zhuo’s *Records of Elders from Xiangyang*: “In Xiangyang, there is the former residence of Kongming, which has a well, five zhang deep and five chi wide, called the Ge Well.” Bao Zhi’s *Records of Nan Yongzhou* states: “In Zhuge’s former residence in Longzhong, there is an old well, now dried up and without water.” Sheng Hongzhi’s *Records of Jingzhou* says: “During the Qi Dynasty’s Jianwu era, someone repaired the well and found a stone pillow, one chi and two cun high and nine cun long, which was presented to Prince An of Jin.” According to literary and historical scholars, the Hexagonal Well is an important basis for identifying the thatched cottage where Zhuge Liang lived, and also serves as a reference point for later restorations of Longzhong relics.

Dabu Town: A Revolutionary Base—Dabu Town is located in the mountainous depths of the Lingnan Mountain Range in northern Guangdong, spanning longitude 113°08′ and latitude 24°32′. It borders Jiangwan Town of Wujiang District to the east, neighbors Boluo Town of Yingde City to the south, and connects to Luoyang Town of the same county to the west and north. Surrounded by peaks covered in lush greenery and blessed with clear waters, it is a typical high-altitude limestone mountain town. With an average elevation of over 600 meters, the climate is mild, with an annual average temperature of 17.3°C and 277 frost-free days per year. The area is rich in hydropower resources, receiving an average annual rainfall of 2040.8 mm. … More details about Dabu Town++