The Guangzhou Big Clock Tower

The Guangzhou Big Clock Tower

is one of the representative works of modern Western neoclassical architecture in Guangzhou, commonly known as the Big Clock Tower. Its chimes are crisp and can be heard up to ten miles away, even in Fangcun. The building was designed by an American architect in 1916, stands 31.85 meters tall including the clock tower, and the main construction materials were all imported from the United States. In the 23rd year of the Kangxi reign during the Qing Dynasty, that is, 1684, the Qing government officially announced the opening of coastal trade in Guangdong, Fujian, Zhejiang, and Jiangsu as primary trading locations, and established four customs offices in Guangzhou, Zhangzhou, Ningbo, and Yuntai Mountain to facilitate foreign trade. Later, the Qing government changed the policy from trade through four ports to trade through only Guangzhou, a policy that lasted for 83 years. What examples can prove this? The Customs House and the Thirteen Hongs further away are good evidence.