Architectural Style of Qiao Family Residence

The Qiao Family Residence is located on three sides of the street and is not connected to the surrounding residential areas. Entering the gate of the Qiao Family Residence is an 80-meter-long straight stone paved tunnel, which divides the six courtyards into two rows in the north and south, and there are berms on both sides of the tunnel against the wall. At the west end is the Qiao Family Ancestral Hall, which corresponds to the gate. There are four main buildings in the compound, and six gate towers, more buildings and overlook pavilions. The roofs of the houses are connected by walkways, which are used to patrol and protect the courtyard, showing the living style of large feudal families in northern China. Not only the overall beauty, but also in the local architectural features, even on the roof of the more than 140 chimneys are also unique. The whole courtyard has pavilions, carved beams and painted buildings, and piles of gold and powder. The periphery is closed brick wall, more than 10 meters high, the upper floor is a female wall type of stacks, and more buildings. The gate sits in the west towards the east, there is a tall roof, the middle of the gateway type doorway, the gate is opposite the brick carving Baishou Tu Zhaobi. Inside the gate, is a stone paved east-west canal, the canal on both sides of the wall with a parapet platform, the end of the canal is the ancestral shrine, and the gate is opposite, for the temple-style structure. The three courtyards on the north side are all turnip corridors and gates with dark latticework and dark pillars.

Three large openings can accommodate three sedans at the same time, and there are horse pillars and mounting stones on the outside of the gate, which are counted from east to west as the Old Courtyard, the Northwest Courtyard and the Study Courtyard, in that order. All the courtyards are of the main and side structure, the main courtyard is where the master lives, and the side courtyards are the guest rooms, servants' rooms and stoves. Architecturally, the side courtyards are lower, and the roof structures are quite different, with the main courtyard having tile roofs and the side courtyards having square brick cottages, which not only shows the ethical order of seniority and inferiority, but also shows a sense of hierarchy in the architecture. The main courtyard has four main buildings, the gate tower, the more building, the overlook pavilion six. The roofs of the houses are connected by walkways, making it easy to patrol the yard at night.

Qiao family compound gate sitting in the west to the east, for the arched doorway, on the tall penthouse, penthouse hanging in the middle of Shanxi governor by the Empress Dowager Cixi face and gift of the plaque, on the book, "blessed species Luanghuan" four big words. The black lacquer door is equipped with a pair of pepper picture beast street large copper ring, and inlaid with a copper base plate couplet: "children and grandchildren, clan will be great; brotherly harmony, the family's fat." The words reveal the hope and pursuit of the owner of Qiaozhongtang, and perhaps it is precisely by following such a way of governing the family that Qiaozhongtang, through the efforts of successive generations, has reached the splendor of a prosperous family with ten-thousand-trillion-dollar family capital. At the top of the main door, there is a green stone inlaid in the center of the door, inscribed with "Ancient Style". On the wall opposite to the gate, there is a brick carving of "Hundred Longevity Diagram", one word for one kind, and the words have elegance. The picture was written by Chang Zhanchun, the grandson-in-law of Qiao Zhiyong, the owner of "In the Middle Hall", and a famous scholar and seal calligrapher in modern times. On both sides of the wall, there is a meaningful couplet in seal script written by Zuo Zongtang, a minister of the Qing Dynasty, which reads: "To restore heavenly justice by undermining human desires, to write articles by storing morals." The couplet reads "Cuihe". At the west end of the tunnel is the Qiao Ancestral Hall with carved dragons and painted buildings, which corresponds to the main gate. The ancestral hall is very well decorated, with three steps, temple structure, lion's head pillars, Chinese alabaster stone carvings, longevity character railings, and latticework doors with wood carvings and clamping fans. Out of the eaves to four pillars to bear the top, the column head has a jade tree with glory, orchid Xin Guifu, vine Luo around the pine hollow wood carvings. There is a plaque on the forehead, the inscription "Ren Zhou Yi Pu" four words, Li Hongzhang's inscription. Ancestral hall of the original display of wood carving carved three layers of ancestral tablets.

The canal is divided into six courtyards north and south rows, three courtyards in the north are open dark latticework column corridor out of the eaves of the gate, easy to car, sedan chair in and out. Outside the gate, there are a horse post and horse stone. From the east to the west, one, two yards for the three into the five Union ring set of courtyard, is a typical Qixian area in five outside the three through the heart of the building courtyard, inside and outside the through the heart of the hall connected. The north side of the courtyard is the main house, two-story building, and the outer courtyard doorway building corresponds to the magnificent. From the main courtyard door to the main room above, you need to climb three times, it not only signifies "three consecutive rises" and "a level step to the blue cloud" of the auspicious meaning, but also the scientific arrangement of the building hierarchy.

The three southern courtyards are two double passes four courtyard, hard hilltop stepped doorway, the west span is positive, the east span is partial. The center and the other two courtyards are slightly different, the front of the main courtyard, the main hall at the breezeway there is a side door and the side of the courtyard connected. The entire row of southern courtyards, the main courtyard was occupied by the clan members, while the side courtyards were used as flower gardens and servants' quarters. Each of the main courtyards in the south yard has a more building on the roof and is configured to build a corresponding more road, connecting the entire compound.

(The above architectural styles are summarized from the reference source) The compound is even more fascinating, that is, everywhere you can see the exquisite panel painting and the art of wood carving, each carving has its folklore meaning. The main gate of each courtyard is carved with different characters. Such as the main door of a courtyard for the rolling purlin doorway, there are hanging columns hemp leaves, hanging columns on the moon beam bucket, card wind cloud son, thirteen head of the dry bucket, among which there are columns bucket, corner bucket, mixed bucket, there are nine crows, can be called the first-class good craftsmanship. The second door and a door for the same, for the chrysanthemum Kakou, the window with dry pattern, the center of the grass dragon spinning board. The three doors of the wood carving kakou for the grapes and hundreds of children.

The main door of the second courtyard wood carving of eight steeds and the three stars of fortune, also known as the three stars of the picture. The second door of the second courtyard wood carving: flower Bogu and God of Fortune and God of Happiness. This flower Bogu is a kind of miscellaneous paintings, the Northern Song Dynasty, Song Huizong ordered people to compile and paint the Xuanhe Temple collection of antiquities, into a "Bogu map". Later generations will be painted on the artifacts, the formation of decorative artifacts, generally known as "Bogu". Such as "Bogutu" plus flowers, fruits as embellishments to complete the painting is called "flower Bogutu". The doorway of the main room is the Nanki Xian riding a deer and the Hundred Sons. Other wood carvings also have Tianguan Zhifu, Sunrise and Moonrise, Kirin sends a son, fortune, three stars and the two immortals of peace and harmony. Harmony two immortals also known as "Harmony two saints", is a folk mythological story painting. The Ming Dynasty Tian Rucheng "West Lake Tourism Zhiyu" said: "Song with Hangzhou to the waxing moon rituals Wan Hui brother, its image of a pudgy head and smiling face, dressed in green, the left hand drum, the right hand holds the stick, the cloud is 'the God of harmony. Worship can make people go home even when they are 10,000 miles away, so it is called Wan Hui." Later, it was divided into two gods and called "Two Immortals of Harmony". Two Immortals are also pudgy and smiling, one holding a lotus flower, one holding a round, to take the meaning of "harmony and good". In the old days, it was usually hung in the hall during weddings to show good luck.

In addition, the wood carving on the column head is also diverse. Such as the eight steeds, pine and bamboo, grapes, said the spreading of many children, upright, robust; hibiscus, osmanthus, Wan Nianqing, said 10,000 years of wealth and prosperity; over the Hall of the wooden clip fan engraved with large-scale relief carving of the "Four Seasons", "Eight Immortals offer longevity," that is, one of the traditional decorative motifs. "Eight Immortals offer birthday", is the legend of Han Zhongli, Zhang Guolao, Han Xiangzi, Li Tiekou, Lv Dongbin, Cao Guoyu, blue color and, He Xianqiu eight Immortals went to Yaochi, for the Queen Mother of the West birthday wishes, so that the composition of the picture pattern, the shape of the beautiful, lifelike. The whole hospital now has more than three hundred pieces of wood carving art. Brick carving process is everywhere, the subject matter is very wide. There are wall carvings, ridge carvings, screen carvings, handrail carvings. Such as a courtyard door carved with four lions, that is, four lions (when) spitting clouds. Horse head carved with "and two immortals", carrying gold and silver treasures. Carved on the card round with orchids. Covering the wall for the "turtle Hanjin", is a traditional decorative pattern, for the hexagonal skeleton composed of continuous geometric shapes. It is named because it resembles the back pattern of a tortoise. In ancient times, tortoise shell was used as a tool for divination, and it was regarded as an omen of good and bad luck. Ancient book, "the book" cloud: "the turtle a thousand years of hair, life of five thousand years is called the god turtle, ten thousand years for the spirit turtle." Turtle for longevity of a spirit, used as a pattern, to show auspicious prolonged life. Into a courtyard opposite the gate there is a large brick land shrine, carved with pine trees, tung trees and stirrups in the Taihu Lake rocky mountain of nine deer, a metaphor for the nine ways. Columns with four lions rolling embroidered balls. A yard off the south wall of the room there are five handrail carving, the middle of the grape hundreds of children, said the vine grows more children and wealth and prosperity, the other four compartments for the "Bogu Tu". A courtyard of the main courtyard horse head carved with four seasons of flowers. In the second courtyard, there are four fruits and the "Eight Immortals" on the horse's head. Because only use the eight immortals held objects, do not paint the immortal, so called "dark eight immortals", contains the meaning of good luck, the Ming and Qing dynasties used more.

The horse head of the gate of the second courtyard of the rhinoceros in front of Hershey, flanked by seasonal flowers. The second courtyard in front of the corridor of the main room of the handrail carving, counting from east to west, one is the magpies, the second is the Kui Long Tengkong, the third is the grapes, the fourth is the heron silk play lotus, the fifth is the sparrow play chrysanthemums. The east side of the courtyard over the door carved with four seasons of flowers, four fruits, plus qin, chess, calligraphy and painting, also take the meaning of good luck.

Three large corridors, horse head front unicorn sends a son, side pine, bamboo, plum and orchid, and plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum.

The four courtyards in the doorway for the incense burner, the side of the zither and chess calligraphy and painting. Inside the courtyard "ladder clouds sieve moon" Hen has four lions (when) Ruyi, plum root dragon head, four seasons, flowers, flowers and riches. And there is a cover wall, Zhao Tieshan writing inscription. On the right are the Eight Immortals, a lion rolling an embroidered ball, signifying peace and goodwill. There is also a phoenix playing peonies, deer and crane in the same spring. The left side is double fish, halberd exhausted, belongs to the auspicious and lucky picture, is one of the traditional decorative patterns, refers to the ancient weapons in the halberd, musical instruments in the exhausted and fish patterns composed of images, take the halberd and the auspicious, exhausted and the celebrations, the fish and the remainder of the homophonic, that is expressed in the auspicious celebration of the surplus. The doorway of the main room in the west courtyard has grapes and chrysanthemums with hundreds of seeds, and the top handrail is a picture of zither, chess, calligraphy, painting and Bogu. The four horse heads have four lions on the front and four seasonal flowers on the side. Especially, the carving of Provincial Proverbs is a rare art treasure as well as the carving of Hundred Longevity Scrolls which has been mentioned before.

The horse head of the doorway of the five courtyards is a unicorn sending its son, and the four horse heads in the courtyards are deer, crane, and tung pine. South main room doorway for the chrysanthemum hundred, in the middle of the seven stars, back to the text of the Beggar's Tale, also known as the "Tanabata Beggar's Tale".

Six hospitals on both sides of the entrance to the East Wing for the magpies, the back of the bamboo and "Fuk Luk Shou" three words. The four horse heads are the Eight Immortals. In the main room, there are grapes, lotus flower in the east and peony in the west. In the front yard, there is the "Fude Shrine", and on the eight treasures, there are two living lions and a metaphorical pattern of auspiciousness. The stone carvings in the Qiao Family Residence, though relatively rare, are very fine. Existing pairs of stone lions, stone lions in different forms, naive. Some stone lions for the pacing forward, knife lines such as new, the sharp edge is still there, the performance of vigilance, mighty, active. The head of its pride, lifting the whole body of the spirit, the lion's performance of the majestic, heroic, but not distorted, giving people a healthy, active, full of vitality.

There is also a negative line carving, such as the five courtyards squatting stone lion base for the "Golden Lion White Elephant", in the "immediately seal the monkey (Marquis)", "Yanshan teach", "Marquis". South room pillar stone base cushion for the "fishermen and woodcutters, farming and reading", "Ma Gu Xianshou" and so on. Six courtyards squatting stone lions on the base of the "generals into the prime minister", "Shentan Yubi" (according to legend, the ancient gods of Shentan, Yubi as a door god, you can avoid the evil evil spirits), "return to the court in triumph" and other line carvings, clear images, smooth lines, images, and other images of the "generations of vassal". The images are clear, smooth and realistic. Qiao family compound of each gate hanging a lot of plaques, there are four of the most valuable. Three of these plaques are the Qiao family, but also worthy of the Qiao family proud and feel honored. That is, four years of Guangxu by Li Hongzhang personally wrote the "Benevolent Zhouyi Pu" and Shanxi Governor Ding Baoquan by the Empress Dowager Cixi Oracle sent "Fu seed Luanghuan" and the Republic of China sixteen years Qixian Changyuan River East thirty-six villages to the Qiao Yingkui's "body ready! Six lines". The first two pieces show that the Qiao family in a certain period of time to the government's donations, and by the court official inscription, therefore doubling the honor and glory. The latter piece also reflects some of the Qiao family's good deeds and ways of dealing with people from one side. Another piece of higher value, that is, Fu Shan personally inscribed "Danfeng Pavilion" plaque (now on display in the fourth courtyard of the Qiao family in the east room). After the completion of the "Danfengge", Fu Shan inscribed a plaque, at the same time, Dai Tingshi wrote "Danfengge records", Fu Shan added a trek in the back.

In addition, there are also the door plaques, such as "Tongyun around", "prudent and thrifty virtue", "book field through the ages", "the taste of reading long "A Hundred Years of Tree Trees", "But We Will Always Try", "Being Good is the Most Pleasant", "Living in Peace", "Ruling in Peace", and "The Rule of the World". ", "The rule of happiness", "Jian Nai Jia", "Jing Guan Xuan", "Stairway to the moon", etc. all have their certainty. "etc. all have their specific meanings. Turtle back Han Jin: Qiao family compound canopies north of three House door on both sides of the six turtle back patterned wall, wall heart to dozens of hexagonal continuous composition of geometric shapes of the turtle back patterned brick masonry, to show that prolonged life, the appearance of a simple and generous. Southeast courtyard and the new courtyard on both sides of the door of the side of the small tortoise back brocade flower wall.

Two Qi ShengHui: qiaojia compound new courtyard opposite the main gate on the mountain wall has "two Qi ShengHui" photo wall, the whole picture consists of two parts, the northern half of the top of the cloud hanging round the moon, under which there is a lotus flower, lotus seed and a pair of mandarin ducks, meaning that even the birth of a child, meaning that the "two gas cross-hair"; the southern half of the top of the cloud hanging round the moon, under which there are lotus flowers, lotus seed and a pair of mandarin ducks, meaning that even the birth of a child, meaning that "two Qi ShengHui "The southern half of the painting consists of a round sun hanging in the clouds, under which there are peonies and a pair of phoenixes, the "peony" being the king of flowers and a product of wealth and honor, and the "phoenix" being the king of birds and an omen of good fortune, signifying "two qi The "phoenix" is the king of birds and an omen of good luck, symbolizing "two qi". This group of brick carvings adopts high relief technique, lotus, peony petals upward cascading prominence, delicate and realistic, three-dimensional sense is very strong.

Magpies as Plum: There is a wall carving of magpies as plum on the flower wall on the west side of the door of the new courtyard of the Qiao Family Residence, which is one of the traditional Chinese auspicious motifs. Plum blossoms are the messengers of spring, and magpies are the annunciation birds, which are the symbols of good luck and good fortune, and magpies as plum signifies the arrival of good luck and celebration. The word "plum" means "eyebrow", and the magpie landing on the plum branch means "happy eyebrow"; there is a pair of magpies in the picture, which also means double happiness.

Cats and butterflies play chrysanthemums: Qiao family compound new courtyard east side of the door on the flower wall pattern by the cat, butterfly, chrysanthemum composition, the cat to take the resonance "eighty," the butterfly to take the resonance "耋", people often say that the "sixty flower Azi, 70 People often say "sixty years old, seventy years old, eighty or ninety years old is called the oldest old". Chrysanthemums open in spite of the autumn cold, loved by the ancient Chinese literati, also has the meaning of longevity, the whole picture has the symbolism of wishing for a long and healthy life.

Plum and bamboo double clear: the Qiao family compound southeast courtyard side of the courtyard door on both sides of the flower wall wall carving pattern for the plum tree, leafy flowers; its corresponding back on both sides of the flower wall brick carving pattern for the bamboo, branching leaf show. These two wall carving picture sparse and dense, unique.

(Wall reference source )

Provincial branch of the Prohibition of the wall carved around the text of the border, decorated with a variety of traditional auspicious motifs. At the top, bats are carved, and at the bottom, clouds are carved, meaning "All Fortunes Flow in the Clouds"; around them are carved the objects held by the Eight Immortals of ancient legends, also known as the "Dark Eight Immortals". These magical objects have also become a traditional folk decorative patterns, auspicious meaning, often combined with the peach pattern means "eight immortals wishing longevity. Carved on both sides of the wall within the insertion of three halberds of joy bottle pattern, "bottle" and "flat", "halberd" and "level" homophonic, "flat rise three levels". Have "flat three levels" of the allegory; halberd below the chime and fish, meaning "auspicious surplus". In addition, the wall is also carved around the unicorn, cranes, deer, phoenix and other auspicious birds and beasts motifs. Shining wall below the two sides of the base of the screen outside each carving two lions, up and down on the play embroidered ball, as the saying goes: "the lion rolling embroidered ball, good in the back." These four lions, also known as the happy lion, said "happy things at the door", "four times as expected".

The whole group of brick carving set of high relief, shallow relief, round carving techniques in a furnace, rich layers, far-reaching meaning, meaning auspicious, humanistic atmosphere, is a typical set of calligraphy, sculpture, folklore in one of the brick carving art. Fully embodies the ancient Chinese traditional culture and folk craftsmanship of the blending of water and milk, has a high artistic and scientific research value.

The text of the wall, "Provincial Proverbs" from the "All Song Wen - Volume 281".