Site of the Shuijingfang Distillery

Site of the Shuijingfang Distillery

The Site of the Shuijingfang Distillery is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Site of the Shuijingfang Distillery is located on the south side of Shuijing Street in Jinjiang District, Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, east of the confluence of the Fuhe and Nanhe rivers. It was originally part of the distillery workshop of the Quanxing Distillery. In August 1998, during renovation work, the Quanxing Distillery discovered ancient brewing remains underground, which led to an archaeological investigation by the Sichuan Provincial Museum to determine the extent of the site.

From March to April 1999, the Chengdu Cultural Relics and Archaeology Research Institute and the Sichuan Provincial Cultural Relics and Archaeology Research Institute jointly conducted an archaeological excavation here, with some personnel from the Sichuan Provincial Museum also participating. The aim of this excavation was to determine the founding date of the Shuijingfang Distillery site, understand the distribution of brewing facilities and its "front shop and back workshop" layout, and provide physical materials for the construction of the Sichuan Quanxing Liquor Culture Museum.

The site has revealed an area of approximately 1,700 square meters, with nearly 280 square meters excavated. The uncovered features include three drying floors, eight fermentation pits, four stoves, four ash pits, as well as road foundations, wooden pillars, and the bases of brewing equipment. A large number of blue-and-white porcelain fragments were unearthed. The drying floors date back to the Ming and Qing dynasties and were in use up to modern times. The discovery of the distillery site reveals the entire brewing process from the Ming and Qing periods. Based on the excavation site, the layout follows a "front shop and back workshop" arrangement, where the drying floors, fermentation pits, and stoves are part of the "back workshop." The street pavement and ceramic tableware and drinking vessels found adjacent to the distillery site are remnants of the storefront that once faced the street. The Shuijingfang Distillery (also known as the Quanxing Distillery) site is located at the original production site of the still-active Quanxing Distillery. Based on stratigraphic superposition and the typological sequencing of artifacts, it connects the Ming, Qing, Republican, and contemporary periods, maintaining uninterrupted production for five to six hundred years. It is the only known example in China of an ancient distillery and tavern combined, often referred to as the No. 1 Liquor Distillery of China.

In June 2001, the Site of the Shuijingfang Distillery was designated as part of the fifth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units by the State Council.

Protected Area: Starting from the center of the circular base of the site, it extends 50 meters southeast, 45 meters southwest, 40 meters northwest, and 52 meters northeast.

Construction Control Zone: An additional 10-meter buffer zone beyond the protected area.

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units