Site of the Old Drum Tower Government Office

Site of the Old Drum Tower Government Office

The Site of the Old Drum Tower Government Office is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Era: Southern Song to Qing Dynasty

Type: Ancient site

Region: Yuzhong District, Chongqing

Batch: Seventh batch

The site faces south and originally covered an area of about 6 mu. The current building area is 230 square meters. The structure features a post-and-lintel wooden frame, with a roof covered in small blue tiles, panelled and plastered walls, and a floor made of bluestone and lime concrete. It has lattice windows and wooden doors. The main hall is adorned with gilded carved transoms featuring figures, mountains, water, flowers, and birds. The exterior includes gilded bracket arms, spandrels, lintels, and carved ornaments. The most distinctive feature of this building is its "three-wave six-purlin water" roof structure — a design rarely seen even in ancient architecture, where two-wave four-purlin configurations are more common. This is the only known example of such a uniquely precious and rare ancient structure in China, reflecting the distinctive architectural style of ancient Chongqing. It holds significant historical, cultural, architectural art, and landscape value. The Baxian Government Office, commonly known as the Baxian Yamen, now gives its name to a street in Yuzhong District, Chongqing. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Xisanjie Subdistrict Office. The section of the old government office street that extends out to the Old Drum Tower Street was called Yamenkou Street. It backed onto a hill, with Zuo Ying Street leading uphill to the right, Wenhua Street to the right, and the Chongqing Prefecture Administrative Office to the left. After the government office was abolished, the area was turned into Baxian Yamen Street, running parallel to Zhong Dajie and Xisi Jie. It extends from Old Drum Tower Street at the front and is backed by a hillside, with Zuo Ying Street and a park above, and lanes on either side leading to the Tax Bureau Lane and Wenhua Street. The Baxian Government Office was the most important official institution in Chongqing. It served as the regional military and political center of ancient Chongqing. According to the *Baxian Annals*: “Originally located to the right of the Chongqing Prefecture Office, it faced east, backed by the mountain. It was destroyed during the late Ming wars. In the sixth year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1667), Magistrate Zhang Ran rebuilt it, and in the sixteenth year of the Qianlong reign (1751), Magistrate Wang Erjian carried out another renovation. According to Qing regulations, the office housed six departments: Household, Rites, Military, Punishment, and Public Works.” At the center were the Main Hall and Second Hall, with the Third Hall at the back. The wings housed the Flower Hall and the Signing Room. Behind the Second Hall were residences for officials’ families. To the right of the Main Hall was the large kitchen, and to the left was the office of the Recorder (clerk). In front of the Main Hall was a large courtyard, with the prison and teahouse to the right, and the Temple of the God of Officials, the Horse King Temple, and the Chaotian Post Station to the left. In front of the courtyard were two ceremonial gates, commonly called the Second Gate. Beyond these were screen walls, flanked by East and West Gateways, commonly referred to as the First Gate. Exiting the Yamenkou, to the left is Old Drum Tower Street, and to the right is Fish Market Intersection. In the early days of the War of Resistance Against Japan, streets such as Old Drum Tower, Yamenkou, and Fish Market Intersection were merged into a section of Lin Sen Road, which is now part of Jiefang East Road. The former site of the Baxian Government Office was designated as a District-Level Cultural Relics Protection Unit by the Yuzhong District People's Government in 2003.

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units