The Chen Clan Ancestral Hall in Wenchong

The Chen Clan Ancestral Hall in Wenchong

The Chen Clan Ancestral Hall in Wenchong is a cultural tourism attraction.

The Chen Clan Ancestral Hall in Wenchong is located at No. 2-1, Jiangbei Zhongyue Street, Wenchong Community, Wenchong Subdistrict, Huangpu District, Guangzhou. Its original construction date is uncertain but is believed to be no later than the 13th year of the Jiaqing reign during the Qing Dynasty (1808), and it was renovated in 1991. Facing south, the hall features a three-bay, three-courtyard layout, with a total width of 13.5 meters and a depth of 30.2 meters, covering a total floor area of 407.7 square meters. It has a flush-gable roof with flush gable walls shaped like an upturned “人,” a dragon boat ridge adorned with plaster sculptures, barrel tiles, and ceramic ridge tiles. The gable ends feature plastered relief motifs of the Chinese symbol for good fortune. The foundation is built from blue bricks and stone. The front of the hall opens onto an open space, street, and a pond, while the other three sides are surrounded by residential buildings.

The main gate is three bays wide, spanning 13.5 meters, and two bays deep, totaling eight meters with eleven rafters, covering a floor area of 108 square meters. The front porch features a three-step beam structure, and the carved beams display decorative patterns of peaches (symbolizing longevity) and dragons. Two stone front eaves pillars are connected to the gable walls via wooden eaves beams, adorned with wood carvings of camel humps and bracket sets. The wooden door panels are painted with door gods, and the stone lintel above the door is inscribed with “Chen Clan Ancestral Hall,” written in the brushstroke style of Chen Baisha, with a seal script engraving on the upper part reading “Jiayou Year of Wushen” (1808). The lower part contains two seal script seals: the upper one reads “Late Spring” and the lower one “□ Built.” The wall frieze features painted poetry and ink paintings. The central bay originally had a middle gate, now only the frame remains. The floor has been replaced with polished terrazzo.

The second courtyard features the ceremonial gate, a three-bay, three-story brick-and-stone memorial archway supported by four pillars. It has a hip-and-gable roof, a plastered relief ridge, barrel tiles, and ceramic ridge tiles. The eaves feature plaster lotus-petal brackets. The central bay door is 2.6 meters wide, with two stone middle pillars in front supporting drum stones. The lintel above the door is inscribed with “De Xing Hui Ju” (Virtuous Stars Gather) on the front and “Dui Yue Zai Tian” (Facing Heaven) on the back. The single lintel beam features plastered plum blossom designs, now partially damaged. The side bays originally had cement-rendered lintels with inscriptions: the left reads “Dao He” (Follow Harmony) and the back “Chong Ben” (Uphold Origins), the right “Lu Zhong” (Follow the Middle) and the back “Bao Gong” (Reward Merit)—all inscribed in modern imitations of ancient calligraphy. The stone pillars on both sides are damaged and encased in protective brickwork.

On either side of the front courtyard of the ceremonial gate are six-rafter corridor structures, with beam frames replaced by concrete elements, and the floor covered with polished terrazzo. The courtyard itself is paved with granite.

The rear hall is three bays wide, 13.5 meters, and three bays deep, 10.3 meters, with thirteen rafters, covering a floor area of 139.05 square meters. The two front stone eaves pillars and four wooden inner pillars have been encased in concrete and coated with a stone-like finish, sitting on concrete bases. The central bay houses a wooden plaque inscribed “Jing Yuan Tang” (Hall of Tranquil Distance), with an inscription dating to the 2nd month of the Bingwu year in the Daoguang reign (1846), “Written by Bao Jun of Xiangshan,” which is a 1991 reproduction; the original wooden plaque is now housed inside the hall. The spirit niche has been destroyed, leaving only a stone altar with a wooden plaque inscribed “Qin Dian Tan Hua Ji Di, Guangxu Wu Nian Yi Mao Gong Yuan Yi Ba Qi Jiu Nian Chen Bo Tao Gong Cheng” (Imperial Selected Top-Scorer, Fifth Year of Guangxu, 1879, Chen Botao respectfully presents), also a reproduction—the original is lost. Chen Botao was from Dongguan and is said to have left this plaque after returning to worship at the ancestral hall upon passing the imperial exams. The floor has been replaced with polished terrazzo. The front courtyard of the rear hall is paved with granite, and the side corridors, also six-rafter structures, have polished terrazzo flooring.

This ancestral hall is well preserved and currently used by clan members.

Wenchong Community: Located in the eastern part of Huangpu District’s central urban area, adjacent to the district government offices, Wenchong Community covers an area of approximately 10.03 square kilometers. It consists of 22 economic cooperatives, with a permanent population of 6,928—3,324 pre-reform residents, 3,604 post-reform agricultural-to-residential residents, and about 20,000 migrants. The per capita income this year is 13,145 yuan. The Wenchong Community Party Committee oversees 18 party branches with a total of 201 official party members and 10 probationary members. In April 2008, the community's three leadership bodies underwent a comprehensive re-election, and the current community leadership team consists of... More detailed information about Wenchong Community++