Bijiang Taixing Street Ancestral Hall Cluster

Bijiang Taixing Street Ancestral Hall Cluster

The Bijiang Taixing Street Ancestral Hall Cluster is a cultural heritage site protected by Foshan City.

The Bijiang Taixing Street Ancestral Hall Cluster is located in Bijiang Community, Beijiao Town, Shunde District. It consists of five ancestral halls from the Ming and Qing dynasties: Zunming Ancestral Hall (also known as Five-Bay Ancestral Hall), Chengbi Su Ancestral Hall, Conglan Su Ancestral Hall, Yiyun Su Ancestral Hall, and Heqiu Su Ancestral Hall.

Zunming Ancestral Hall, also known as Zide Hall and commonly referred to as the "Five-Bay Ancestral Hall," was built during the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty. The surviving front section and central hall cover an area of 1,107.2 square meters. Both the structure and building materials retain the typical architectural style of the Ming Dynasty. The hall is 32.45 meters wide in total, with the central section having three bays and a seven-rafter frame plus four-step beams in the front and rear, reaching a depth of 14 meters. This scale is truly rare among existing ancient buildings with five bays and seven rafter frames in the province.

The Research Institute of Oriental Architectural Culture at South China University of Technology commented on Zunming Ancestral Hall: Its beams and stone pillars exhibit clear Ming Dynasty features, and its five-bay layout is uncommon among folk ancestral halls, giving it considerable uniqueness. The main hall boasts a grand yet elegant architectural style with exquisite details, holding high artistic value.

Heqiu Su Ancestral Hall was originally built in the Ming Dynasty and renovated during the Qing Dynasty. A Ming Dynasty ancient well still exists inside the hall. The current ancestral hall covers an area of 386.28 square meters, featuring a flush gable roof and a dragon boat ridge, with gate alleys on both sides. A brick-and-stone memorial archway divides the courtyard into two halves. The archway has carved stone plaques on both sides: the front plaque reads “Worldly Grace” (世承天宠), inscribed by Ou Daren, a Ming Dynasty poet and scholar and one of the “Later Five Masters of Nanyuan,” from Chencun; the inscription’s upper dedication refers to Su Shun, the 13th-generation ancestor of the North Hall who was granted the title “Confucian Gentleman” (儒林郎) and was related by marriage to Ou Daren. The back plaque reads “Erudite and Eloquent” (博学鸿词), inscribed by Liu Shu for “Old Master Su, recommended in the first year of the Qianlong reign for his mastery of classical studies.” Su Er, also known as Guchai, was the 21st-generation ancestor of the North Hall and a renowned scholar, poet, and calligrapher in Guangdong during the Qing Dynasty. He was nominated in the first year of the Qianlong reign but did not go to the capital to take the imperial examinations.

Yiyun Su Ancestral Hall was built in the Qing Dynasty, with a width of three bays and a depth of two sections, spanning 10.88 meters in width and 16.8 meters in depth. Constructed in the mid-to-late Qing Dynasty, it is a private ancestral hall for the North Hall lineage of the Bijiang Su clan. It features wok ear gables and grey-plastered antique ridges, with the main structure well-preserved. The front section has polished blue brick exterior walls and a recessed entrance door. The rear main hall has only two central columns, with a bracket-and-beam system where the front beam is supported by the side wall of the secondary bay, differing from the typical four-pillar hall design. The red stone altar inside remains exquisitely crafted.

Conglan Su Ancestral Hall was built in the mid-Qing Dynasty and is located across a small alley from Chengbi Ancestral Hall, with a side door connecting the two halls within the alley. Conglan Ancestral Hall is 11.4 meters wide and 34.3 meters deep, covering an area of 381.1 square meters, with the rear sleeping quarters having collapsed. Its layout closely resembles that of Chengbi Ancestral Hall, though it is slightly smaller in scale. The central hall’s central columns are vase-shaped and intricately carved.

The main gate still retains a stone plaque inscribed by Su He in the 11th year of the Jiaqing reign of the Qing Dynasty (1767), indicating that its construction postdates that of Chengbi Ancestral Hall.

Chengbi Su Ancestral Hall

Chengbi Su Ancestral Hall

Chengbi Su Ancestral Hall was originally built in the Ming Dynasty and renovated in the Qing Dynasty. The hall faces east and is 12.75 meters wide and 37.14 meters deep, covering an area of 473.53 square meters. It features wok ear gables, antique ridges, and brick-carved gable walls. The front section includes a schoolroom with granite square pillars and arched beams, all finely carved. The outer gable walls on both sides have symmetrical outer alleys, each with an alley gate tower resembling a Qingyun Alley.

Bijiang Community: The Bijiang Community Neighborhood Committee is located 5.8 kilometers northeast of the town center of Beijiao Town and serves as the “eastern gateway” of Shunde. The community covers a total area of 8.9 square kilometers, comprising 12 resident groups with a permanent population of 28,000, including 14,827 registered residents. According to county records: Bijiang originated as a village during the Song Dynasty, originally called “Pogang” due to two rocks on a local earthen mound pressing against each other. It was later renamed Bijiang (using a homophone) and has retained the name since. Originally part of Panyu County’s Zini Office and Longtou Fort, it was incorporated into Shunde County in the third year of the Jingtai reign of the Ming Dynasty (1452) and belonged to the Third District during the Republican era. … Detailed information about Bijiang Community++