The Folk Houses of Huizhou
5 min readHuizhou is located in the south of the Anhui province.Ever since the middle of the Ming dynasty，merchants have risen and the local economy has developed greatly.
The merchants managed businesses such as salt，pawn shops and timber and they have made great fortune，so luxurious houses were built to show their wealth.Till now，many such houses are kept in good condition.
Most residences of Huizhou were built in the Ming and Qing dynasties，the Qing dynasty in particular.One feature of residences of Huizhou is their strong cultural color.The refined merchants in Huizhou are called the”Confucian merchants”.Like most literati，they are high-hearted，and share the same interests and living style with the literati，which imposes great influence over residences of Huizhou.The cultural environment surrounding the residences of Huizhou makes them great place to cultivate good personality and to read.Influenced by the merchants of Huizhou，the wonderful residences are aggregation of classic elegance，luxury and refinement.
Most residences of Huizhou are built on the mountain side，or at the foot of a mountain along the contour lines，giving a felling of perfect integration of human beings with the nature.While choosing the suitable location，the factors such as the arrangement of landscape and sight，condition of lightening and ventilation，theterrain condition and so on should be considered.The basic shape of the residences is triangle，and there are quadrangles and other shapes as well.As the residences are affected by the geographic position，the principal houses are required to be symmetrical on the central axes，and other houses could change according to the slope of the mountains.The principal house is commonly a two-story building.The middle of the first floor is the important part of the residence-the principal house for the elder generation and which is laid out better.The middle of the second floor is the ancestors’hall，where ancestors’tablets rest.On both sides of the house are wing-rooms，which are usually smaller and used to store sundries.Compared with other residences，the rooms on the second floor are connected with each other with delicately carved wooden handrail outside rooms.
The narrow and small light courts and the high buildings of residences in Huizhou make the house darker.Rain runs into the courtyard from the light courts，which means that”water from four directions runs into the same hall”.Besides，there are stone escape canal inside the courtyard to drain the water out quickly.
The residences are surrounded by fireproof walls and bounding walls with the windows closed.The fireproof walls are not only beautiful，but able to prevent fire and wind.The residences of Anhui province are arranged around ancestral halls andconnect together，which would lead to catastrophe once fire breaks out.However，the high and thick fireproof walls can prevent the fire from spreading.The fireproof walls have many different shapes，such as the horse-head walls，bow-shape walls，the Chinese character”六”-shape walls.In addition，the high fireproof walls make a highly closed courtyard.
The residences of Huizhou are not only famous for the general structure，but also for its decoration.There are three kinds of carvings in Huizhou，namely wooden carvings，brick carvings and stone carvings，which are widely used in the residences.For example，there are various kinds of refined and beautiful wooden carvings near the partition boards，the railings and the folding screens.At first，there are only some simple wicker and Ruyi（S-shaped ornamental object a symbol of good luck）patterns on wooden carvings；later on，there are flowers，birds，insects and fish and historic stories，among which brocade patterns and chestnut flowers are often used.The brick carvings are mostly used on the gates，while the stone carvings are used on the windows in walls.These carvings are arranged in order，making the building more refined and beautiful.Besides，the eaves are long enougl to protect against rain.The horse-head walls make the wall line neat，and along with the blue tiles and white walls，they form a beautiful picture.All these are filled with poetic elements and lead people into fantasy.
The ancient folk houses complex in Yixian county, south of Anhui province is the outstanding representative of ancient Anhui style residential architecture.
The residences of Huizhou in Yixian county are mainly in Xidi village and Hongcun village. There are hundreds of residences from the Ming and Qing dynasties, including 124 old buildings in Xidi village and 137 residences of the Qing dynasty in Hongcun village. The two villages preserve a large number of residential heritages, providing evidences for the research of ancient buildings and enhancing the development of folklore and architecture of China. Thanks to the residences preserved in Xidi village, the village is listed as the UNESCO world culture heritage. Xidi village is surrounded by mountains in every direction; and two rivers run through it. And the residences stand along the rivers naturally. In this way, static houses and dynamic rivers combined together, making the village look more beautiful and charming. As a whole, the residences in Xidi village are grander and more luxurious than that of other places. From the aspect of decoration, the residences here paid much more attention to the cooperation of wooden carvings, stone carvings and brick carvings, on which the images, the figures and the beasts are more vivid. In addition, the decorations on the doorframes, the windows, the partition boards and the folding screens are more refined. Residences in other places of Huizhou don’t pay so much attention to the colored drawings as in Xid village. In Xidi village, the colored drawings are colorful and there are mural paintings on walls. All in all, the residences in Xidi village are the finest specimens of Chinese folk houses.
Hongcun village was built in Shaoxi Period of the Southern Song dynasty(1189-1194) and has a history of more than 800 years. Hongcun village is built at the foo of a hill near the branches of Yellow Mountain, Yangzhan Mountain and Leigang Mountain. As it is located in high place and is often surrounded by cloud, it looks like a landscape picture, thus winning the name of “the Chinese village in picture”. The brick carvings, stone carvings and wooden carvings here are more various and refined. Although the walls have experienced years of erosion, they still show their purity and dignity.
A11 in all, the integrated and beautiful appearance, the harmonious, elegant and decent setting inside, and the exquisite decoration make the residences of Huizhou the important residential complex of China, and also the representative of residential architecture.
