Jingbo Huang Ancestral Hall

Jingbo Huang Ancestral Hall

Jingbo Huang Ancestral Hall is a protected cultural heritage site of Guangzhou.

Jingbo Huang Ancestral Hall, also known as the Five Generations Under One Roof Hall, is located on Rende Road in Chalong Village, Songzhou Subdistrict. It was a private ancestral hall built during his lifetime by Huang Jingbo, a native of Chalong Village. Constructed in the 15th year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty (1889), it was renovated in March 2005 with over one million RMB funded by the Chalong Economic Development Corporation. The structure faces west and consists of three parts: a memorial archway, a courtyard, and the main ancestral shrine. It is a fusion of Chinese and Western architectural styles, covering a total area of approximately 1,200 square meters.

The entrance archway is 5.56 meters wide and 7.5 meters tall, built from granite in the style of a three-bay, four-pillar flush gateway. The square stone pillars support semi-circular arches, beneath which stand two European-style columns. The front lintel is inscribed in intaglio with “Five Generations Under One Roof,” while the central arch above it is engraved with “Preserving the Reflection of Jingbo.” The side sections bear the carvings “Orchid and Osmanthus” and “Fragrant Legacy.” The rear lintel is inscribed with “Virtue Governs the Neighborhood,” and the side sections read “Filial Piety” and “Brotherly Respect.” The decorative patterns of the entire archway showcase a blend of Chinese and Western architectural elements.

Inside the archway lies a small courtyard, approximately 28 meters wide and 10 meters deep. A pathway runs through the center, flanked by planted flowers and plants. At the northwest and southwest corners of the courtyard, in front of the two side shrines, stand pavilions, each two stories high with glazed tiles, hip-and-gable roofs, slightly upturned eaves, and four round columns. The second-floor railings of both pavilions are inscribed in intaglio with “Branching Out” and “Dividing Lineage.”

To the west of the courtyard lies Jingbo Huang Ancestral Hall. The structure has three rows and two courtyards, with a total width of 27.18 meters and depth of 26 meters, covering a built-up area of 706.65 square meters. The central row is the main ancestral hall, featuring a flush gable roof and a hipped gable wall in the shape of a Chinese character 人. The high ridge is decorated with elaborate stucco carvings, including the “Peach Garden Oath” and various animal figures, all finely crafted. The roof is covered with gray tubular tiles, edged with glazed tile ornaments. Side shrines are built on either side, separated by a Qingyun Lane (Azure Cloud Alley), with stone plaques on the lane inscribed “Spring Dew” and “Autumn Frost.”

The front gate is a recessed entrance. The stone lintel above the gate is inscribed in intaglio with “Jingbo Huang Ancestral Hall,” with the upper inscription “Early Summer, Year of Guihai” and the lower “Shan Yu Wei Guo.” The gate is three bays wide (13.7 meters) and two bays deep (10 meters). The recessed entrance is 5.21 meters wide and 1 meter deep. The front section is supported by thirteen rafters spanning the side gables. The rear section features exquisitely carved screen doors in the middle two bays, with a terrazzo floor. The front courtyard inside the gate is 3.3 meters wide and 6 meters deep, paved with granite slabs arranged in a bagua (Eight Trigrams) pattern. On either side of the courtyard are corridors, 5.2 meters wide, with reinforced concrete flat roofs and wooden ceiling panels.

The second row, or rear hall, is three bays wide (13.7 meters) and three bays deep (10 meters). Its gable walls, roof ridges, and roofing resemble those of the front gate, with a total of fifteen rafters. The front section includes a four-rafter veranda, supported by three rows of columns in the front and back, as well as the rear wall. Four ironwood (kwangtung) pillars are erected, with the front ones inscribed with a couplet: “The hall is newly refurbished, continuing the filial devotion of ancestors; the ancestral rites demand purity, offering wine to honor virtue’s fragrance.” It is said that the two halls originally had 99 doors, though most are now hard to find. The original wooden upper floors were replaced with reinforced concrete during renovation.

In the 1960s, the ancestral hall served as the campus of Chalong Primary School and is now managed by the Chalong Economic Development Corporation. In September 2005, it was designated as a Registered Cultural Heritage Protection Unit of Guangzhou.

Further Reading:

· Eighth Batch of Guangzhou Municipal Cultural Heritage Protection Units