Datong Exhibition Hall

Datong Exhibition Hall

Datong Exhibition Hall is a cultural heritage site protected at the provincial level in Shanxi Province.

Datong Exhibition Hall (Fifth Batch of Provincial-Level Protected Sites)

Era: 1969

Address: West Street, Chengqu District, Datong City

Datong Exhibition Hall is a unique building born during a special historical period, and the people of Datong have a deep and inseparable emotional attachment to it. In 1969, when the 9th National Congress of the Communist Party of China was held, influenced by the political climate of the time, cities such as Shenyang, Shijiazhuang, Hangzhou, and Zhangjiakou all saw the construction of "Long Live Mao Zedong Thought Exhibition Halls" (commonly known as the "Long Live Exhibition Halls"). The Datong Long Live Mao Zedong Thought Exhibition Hall also officially broke ground on April 1 of that year, the day the 9th Congress was convened. City-wide party, government, military leaders, and hundreds of thousands of people from all walks of life, including workers, peasants, soldiers, students, and businesspeople, participated in the voluntary labor for the construction with great political enthusiasm. Upon completion, the exhibition hall, with its grandeur reminiscent of the Great Hall of the People in the capital, became an important venue for various political and socio-cultural activities in the city. From initial design to completion, it took just over a year, achieving what was then an incredible feat known as the "Datong Speed."

In the late 1990s, the state-owned Hongqi Department Store concluded its historical mission. Later, the local government made the decision to restore its cultural function. The Datong Library and Datong Museum moved in respectively in 2007 and 2009, turning the site into a modern comprehensive complex integrating a museum, exhibition hall, and library.

Datong Exhibition Hall is located on the north side of the square outside the West Gate of Datong City. It faces south with a north orientation, measuring 73.44 meters in length from north to south and 177.7 meters in width from east to west, with a height of 26 meters and a floor area of 13,050 square meters. Built in 1969, the building has a linear "I" shaped floor plan. The front façade and both side entrances feature circular colonnades. The main structure has four floors, while the wings have three. The entire building includes a 4.5-meter-high semi-basement. The front façade consists of a mezzanine with four corridors, each 7.2 meters high, adorned with reliefs. The central hall has two-story-high ceilings. The top floor houses a 300-seat conference hall with an 8.5-meter ceiling height. The interior features column-supported architecture with sunflower-shaped light fixtures. The building is entirely constructed with a reinforced concrete composite structure. The exterior prominently displays slogans such as "Long Live the People's Republic of China" and "Long Live the Great Unity of the World’s Peoples," reflecting the architectural style of the era and has now become one of Datong’s iconic buildings.

In 2006, to provide scientific data for the maintenance and renovation of the exhibition hall, the Institute of Engineering Mechanics of the China Earthquake Administration, the Shanxi Academy of Building Research, and the Datong Surveying and Mapping Institute jointly conducted a comprehensive scientific assessment of the building. The results showed that after nearly 40 years of weathering and several major earthquakes, aside from some localized damage, all structural quality indicators remained excellent, and the overall structure of the building was still very solid.

In 2012, Datong launched a plan for the protection and restoration of the ancient city. During the restoration of the West City Wall, as the exhibition hall was located within the axis of the ancient city’s west wall and the reconstruction area of the barbican, in order to balance the protection of the historic city and the preservation of historical architecture, the Datong municipal government extensively consulted experts and citizens and conducted scientific evaluations. Ultimately, it was decided to carry out a protective, full-scale relocation of this landmark building. The exhibition hall was moved a total straight-line distance of approximately 1,402 meters (excluding rotational movement), including a 90-degree rotation, with the total weight of the move (including the pallet structure) being about 57,768 tons. The project took over two years to complete. After the relocation, Datong Exhibition Hall retained its original structural appearance and now stands intact, facing west alongside the ancient city wall.

Built in 1969, Datong Exhibition Hall is a representative modern building that carries the historical memory of Datong. As a structure that embodies a specific period in Datong’s history and showcases the architectural characteristics and achievements of the Cultural Revolution era, it is a uniquely symbolic landmark. Few such buildings remain nationwide, and the former Minister of Construction of China, Wang Guangtao, referred to it as “Datong’s only modern iconic building.”

Source: Shanxi Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of Shanxi Provincial Cultural Heritage Protection Units