Shiwan Pottery Ancestors Temple

Shiwan Pottery Ancestors Temple

The Shiwan Pottery Ancestors Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Situated on Shuixiang within the jurisdiction of Shiwan Town Subdistrict, it is one of the “Four Ancient Sites of Shiwan” (the other three being Fengning Temple, Lianfeng Academy, and Gaomiao). Originally constructed in the late Song and early Yuan dynasties (around 1273), it covered an area of approximately 30 square meters. In the seventh year of the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty (1528), various pottery trade guilds funded its expansion and relocation to Lianzigang’s eastern foothills in Shiwu Township (known as Shiwu Township during the Ming Dynasty, now the site of Foshan Chemical Machinery Factory). To its south were the “Lianfeng Academy” and “Fengning Temple” (both still exist). The Pottery Ancestors Temple underwent renovations and expansions during the Jiaqing reign (1796–1820), the ninth year of the Tongzhi reign (1870), the Guangxu reign (1875–1908), and in 1926, gradually increasing in size. The final major renovation in 1926 was the most extensive, with strong support from Luo Jiting, a renowned local traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, overseas Chinese businessman Jian Zhaonan from Lanshiyong Village in Lanshi, and the Foshan Lianhua Coach Company. In addition to renovating the temple buildings, the 1926 project expanded the garden and pottery shops, adding a hexagonal pavilion. After 1930, the temple area was further developed into an entertainment ground for potters. Volume 12 of the 1821 (Daoguang reign) version of the “Nanhai County Annals” states: “The main gate of the Pottery Ancestors Temple bears a vertical plaque inscribed with the four large characters ‘陶师祖庙’ (Pottery Ancestors Temple), which is the temple’s official name, while ‘陶师庙’ (Pottery Ancestors Temple) is the common name used by the public.”

By that time, the Pottery Ancestors Temple had become a sacred site of Taoism in Lingnan and effectively the headquarters of the pottery industry guild. It integrated pottery culture with Taoist culture. In the early Republican era, the Pottery Ancestors Temple was grand and majestic, covering an area of 3,700 square meters with a building complex 50 meters wide and 70 meters deep. The front of the temple featured a granite pond, while the interior structures were made of brick and wood, topped with green-glazed tiles. The architectural style featured flush gable roofs and “helmet”-style gable walls, built with a combination of brick, wood, stone, and tile. The main structure had three courtyards, consisting of the Mountain Gate, Front Hall, and Yu Emperor Hall arranged along a northeast-southwest axis and progressively elevated, forming a courtyard-style layout. The dining corridors on the east and west sides could each accommodate 500 diners at once. The entire building protruded about 5 meters forward, forming a concave shape at the front with five entrances, including a pair of large stone lions at the main gate. The temple’s screen wall and numerous decorative murals were masterpieces crafted by various pottery guilds, among which “Wei Chou Subduing the Tapir,” created by the renowned artist Huang Bing (1815–1894), was the most famous.

In October 1938, when Japanese forces occupied Foshan, Shiwan also fell, and the Pottery Ancestors Temple was destroyed. The pair of stone lions at the front were abandoned in the ruins and remain the only relics of the temple. In 1957, the lions were moved to the Shiwan Town Workers’ Cultural Palace, and after the construction of Shiwan Park in the 1970s, they were relocated to the park’s entrance. Although the Pottery Ancestors Temple has been destroyed for many years, the survival of the stone lions makes them extremely precious. As a result, Shiwan Town decided to place the lions at the entrance of the reconstructed Pottery Ancestors Temple upon its completion.

The pottery industry in Shiwan venerates Emperor Shun (Yu Shun) as its patron saint. A descendant of the Yellow Emperor in the eighth generation, Emperor Shun was a wise and benevolent ruler in ancient China. Because he once made pottery by the river, he is revered as the ancestor of the pottery craft. The deity worshipped at the Shiwan Pottery Ancestors Temple is Emperor Shun. Starting from the Ming Dynasty, Shiwan designated the 26th day of the third lunar month and the 22nd day of the eighth lunar month each year as the birthdays of the patron saint, holding grand worship ceremonies known as the “Spring and Autumn Worship.” On these days, vegetarian banquets were held in the dining corridors on both sides of the temple, with six people per table and each corridor accommodating up to 500 people, totaling 1,000 diners. During non-festival periods, most of the temple’s space was divided into stalls for selling pottery products, turning the temple square into a bustling commercial area. The adjacent market near the front of Lianfeng Academy down to the foot of Lianzigang had long been established, divided into three sections: stationery, meat and fish, and vegetables and fruits. The market operated daily from dawn until the afternoon, with even greater activity on the first and fifth days of the lunar month, hence the name “Lianfeng Day Market.”

In 2005, the Shiwan Town Subdistrict Office decided to rebuild the Pottery Ancestors Temple, selecting a site within Shiwan Park adjacent to the Nanfeng Ancient Kiln. This reconstruction project was the largest in history, featuring a north-facing, three-courtyard, two-corridor architectural complex with “helmet”-style gable walls. The three courtyards consist of the Mountain Gate, Motherly Love Hall, and Yu Emperor Hall. The halls enshrine three historical figures: the Pottery Ancestor — Emperor Shun (statue height: 2.88 meters); the Merchant Sage — Tao Zhugong (Fan Li) (statue height: 1.98 meters); and the Pottery Deity — Ning Fengzi (statue height: 1.98 meters). On both the east and west sides are rows of auxiliary halls serving functions such as vegetarian dining halls, tea rooms, and art exhibition rooms. The reconstructed three-courtyard halls feature unique ridge ornaments, with the first courtyard’s Mountain Gate Hall adorned with a 23-meter-long “Immortals Celebrating Longevity” theme. The figures on the ridge appear graceful and lifelike. The second courtyard’s Motherly Love Hall features a 23.2-meter-long, 1.38-meter-high ridge sculpture depicting “Emperor Gaozu of Han Proclaiming Himself Emperor,” including 11 legendary scenes such as slaying the snake, Zhang Liang receiving shoes, Xiao He chasing Han Xin under the moon, the Feast at Hongmen, Han Xin mustering troops, the secret crossing of Chen Cang, capturing Pengcheng, teasing Ying Bu, the Battle of Xingyang, the conquest of the Three Qins, and the Battle of Gaixia. The ridge includes 188 figures and 108 scenes, with pavilions, terraces, towers, animals, birds, flowers, and fruits intricately arranged. The third courtyard’s Yu Emperor Hall features a 23-meter-long ridge sculpture with the theme “Emperor Shun’s Southern Tour,” illustrating stories from the Twenty-Four Filial Exemplars such as Shun moving heaven with his filial piety, teaching agriculture, sericulture, fishing, and pottery-making, as well as the abdication of Emperor Yao, the flood control by Yu the Great, and the tears of Ehuang and Nüying on the Xiangfei bamboo. The vivid expressions of the figures and rich scenes make it a masterpiece. In front of the Mountain Gate is the Pottery Ancestors Temple Square. The entire temple complex covers 40 mu (about 2.67 hectares), including a 20-mu (about 1.33 hectares) square that can accommodate 10,000 people. Construction began on February 28, 2006, and was completed on December 27, 2006, with an inauguration ceremony held the same day before opening to the public. Since then, all related pottery industry commemorative events have been held here.

Shiwan Town Subdistrict: Located in the southeastern part of Chancheng District, on the northern bank of the Dongping River, a tributary of the Beijiang River, Shiwan Town Subdistrict borders Nanhai District to the east, Shunde District to the south, Zhangcha Subdistrict to the west, and Zumiao Subdistrict to the north. It is an important part of Foshan’s urban core and the seat of the Chancheng District Committee and District Government. The subdistrict covers an area of 26.62 square kilometers, with 12 administrative villages and 24 community residential committees, and a permanent population of about 300,000. The area has a well-developed transportation network, with several major east-west and north-south urban arteries passing through, including Jihua Road, Kuiqi Road, Foshan Avenue, and Lingnan Avenue. Shiwan Town Subdistrict detailed information++