Songtangzhai Folk Carving Museum

　　The Beijing Songtangzhai Folk Carving Museum is located just 10 meters below the archway at the east entrance of Guozijian Street. It is the first privately-run museum in China with a focus on folk carvings, and is the only museum in the world made up of “rescued” yet most valuable artifacts. Established in October 2001, its former site was at No. 14, Liulichang East Street, Xuanwu District. On July 12, 2008, it moved and reopened across from Lama Temple. Mr. Li Songtang collected carvings from demolished residential buildings in Beijing — door knockers, roof ridges, tile edges, screen walls, gate piers… thousands of pieces. The exhibits are mainly divided into three categories: stone carvings, brick carvings, and wood carvings, ranging from the twisted tiles and Qin bricks & Han tiles of the Spring and Autumn Period to those from the Ming, Qing, and Republican eras. Many of these varieties have never been collected by national museums.

　　The Songtangzhai Folk Museum

　　The Songtangzhai Folk Carving Museum is located at Courtyard No. 3, Guozijian Street, and is privately operated by the renowned collector Mr. Li Songtang (Li Wei). The collection includes over a thousand items such as stone carvings, wood carvings, brick carvings, traditional architectural components, decorative pieces, indoor furnishings, and furniture, dating from the Qin bricks & Han tiles to the Ming and Qing periods. These include tiles featuring a double-fish pattern from the Spring and Autumn Period; Qin bricks and Han tiles; gate piers, mounting stones, horse-tethering posts, stone-carved gateways, wood-carved gateways, screens, shrines, dragon designs on caisson ceilings, and painted brackets from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Several pairs of gate piers displayed in the museum are treasures among the 400+ pairs in Mr. Li’s collection. One pair, from the residence of a prime minister during Beijing's time as the Yuan Dynasty capital, features patterns designed by Zhao Mengfu depicting “Barbarians Taming Beasts” and “Barbarians Watering Beasts,” and can be considered national treasures among gate piers—extremely precious.

　　The first privately-run museum in China dedicated to folk carvings. Located at Courtyard No. 3, Guozijian Street, Dongcheng District. The building is one of the best-preserved Ming and Qing courtyard homes. It first opened in 2002 at No. 14, Liulichang East Street. The original venue was a two-story building with an area of 254 square meters. It relocated to its current address in July 2008. The collection includes various types of folk carvings personally collected by Director Li Songtang and acquired from around the country. The exhibits are mainly divided into three categories: stone carvings, brick carvings, and wood carvings, totaling nearly a thousand pieces from the twisted tiles and Qin bricks & Han tiles of the Spring and Autumn Period to the folk brick, stone, and wood architectural components and decorations from the Ming, Qing, and Republican eras. Many of these types are rarely found in national museums. The museum’s pièce de résistance is a Qing Dynasty stone carving beam known as the “Emperor’s Procession.”

　　Source: Beijing Municipal Commission of Tourism Development