Background Story of Sandotang Museum

Taigu Cao Family Compound - Sandotang Museum, which was originally a "Shou" shaped mansion of the Cao family in Beiyao, a rich Jin merchant, is majestic and tall, resembling a castle, independent of the northern part of the village, in stark contrast to the surrounding low-rise residential houses. The mansion covers a total area of 10638 square meters, construction area of 6348 square meters, preserved Ming, Qing, Republic of China three generations of the architectural complex, displaying countless treasures, is the new development of a Jinshang cultural tourist attractions. 1995 October opening, has become a hot spot of Jinzhong tourism. It is a provincial key cultural relics protection unit.

Cao family ancestor Cao Bangyan is Taiyuan Jinci Huatazhong village people, to sell casseroles for a living, Ming Hongwu years, the family migrated to Taigu Beiyao village, and farming. In the 14th generation, there was a man named Cao Sanxi, who was the only one who broke into the Guandong province to do business and made a lot of profit, and at that time, the so-called "Guanwai seven halls" had the Cao family's business name. Qing soldiers entered the customs, and the business to the customs, first set up a number in Taigu, to the national radiation. To the Daoguang, Xianfeng years, to reach its peak, the north and south of the Yangtze River have Cao family store, amounting to more than 640, with assets of up to 12 million silver, employing 37,000 people, so the townspeople have "wherever there is a sparrow flew over the Cao family's business," the saying. Later, they went abroad, east to Japan, north to Moscow, west to Paris, London, the domestic tea, cloth to foreign countries, the introduction of Japan's iron and steel, Goryeo's ginseng, Russia's metal products. Cao family in Shanxi and Mongolia out of a "tea road", comparable to the historical "Silk Road". Unfortunately, in the Guangxu Jiawu, Gengzi years later due to war, business competition, the descendants of the luxury and indulgence led to failure, finally finished their own brilliant course.

The Cao family in its heyday, in the North Indo-China Village built a number of huge layout of magnificent mansions, such as: Wugui Hall, Huaiyi Hall, Fushan Hall, Sandaodang, etc., especially "Fu", "Luk", "Shou", "Shou", "Shou", "Shou", "Shou", "Shou", "Shou", "Shou", "Shou", "Shou", "Shou" and "Shou". The four compounds built in the shape of "Fu", "Luk", "Shou" and "Jubilee" are the most representative. The surviving "Shou" mansion is a branch of the Cao family name, customarily known as the content of more happiness, more life, more men as the "three more halls". This mansion with towering elegance, heavy and simple features in the first group of homes. The mansion is situated in the north-south direction, divided into north-south two parts, east-west side by side three big courtyards, connecting three three-storey 17-meter-high buildings, within the set of 15 small courtyards, the existing premises 277 rooms. The whole building carved beams and paintings, dragon tower and phoenix pavilion lined up, walk corridor hipped meandering, raise the eaves and teeth high beak, very large and grand. There are also three pavilion-type towers on the top of the building, the flying pavilion in the sky, is the Cao family guards patrolling the place, but also the master of the cup to invite the moon place. The shape of the building is similar to the ancient sacrificial cow, sheep and pig head. When it is misty in the early morning, or when it is dusk and twilight, standing in the distance, the three roofs and the whole building together resemble three huge "ox", "sheep" and "pig" shapes, and the three pavilions are also the place for the guards of the Cao family to patrol, and also the place for the master to drink and invite the moon. The three top floors and the whole building together look like three huge "cow", "sheep" and "pig" shapes. This kind of construction sense of pursuing the new and seeking for the strange adds a few points of splendor and mystery to the mansion. Sandotang building can be called the Chinese folk house oddball, however, Sandotang exhibition of treasures is the stamen of the flowers. It displays 12 contents of four major items, thousands of cultural relics and crafts, thousands of photos, together with paintings, calligraphy, models and modernized lighting and sound effects, better reflecting the overview of the Cao family in its heyday. The "Business History of the Cao Family" mainly reflects the process of the Cao family from the hard work of starting a business to the creation of splendor and the decline of the Cao family through the generations. There is the stage of "working at sunrise and resting at sunset"; there is the glorious period of "600 seats in Liao, Feng, Meng and Russia" and "four circles of fortune, wealth, longevity and happiness"; and there is the period of decline. "The white smoke is a stream of instantaneous, a thousand years of tile and gold fall one after another," the scene.

"Ming and Qing Dynasty Furniture Exhibition" displays more than 400 pieces of furniture of the Ming and Qing dynasties, there are rare with 92 pieces of natural patterned marble inlaid with the "Hundred Longevity Screen", the back of the upper and lower each 50 "life! "character type and three generations of emperors division Qizao excerpts from the ancient seventeen scholars enlightenment admonition of future generations of authentic articles. One hundred longevity characters and articles are engraved with the yin carving technique on it, and painted with gold powder. There is a "conch inlay shell mirror", with natural shells carved on the folk auspicious patterns and "Fortune, Longevity" three stars, when you choose a different angle, it will show a different color. According to legend, if you see red will be lucky, see pink is to go peach blossom luck, and yellow is a sign of wealth and prosperity. And there are " inch catty inch gold " " mahogany half round table ", three-dimensional creation of " marble seat mirror " and hundreds of pieces of furniture of the Ming and Qing dynasties, " the Royal see the Forbidden City The folk see Caojia" said.

"Porcelain Museum" has nearly 2,000 pieces of porcelain on display, from dusting bottles, jars, to plates, bowls, plates, large and small, a wide range, including many Ming and Qing treasures. Surprisingly, in the "treasure hall" on display in the Qing dynasty national treasure gold locomotive clock and the Ming dynasty painter Qiu Ying copy of the Northern Song dynasty Zhang Zeduan's "Riverside at Qingming". Qingming Riverside Scroll", scroll length of 7.74 meters, 0.45 meters wide, with 1,643 characters, 208 head of livestock, vivid and realistic, valuable. Also on display are feather mirrors, ancient ceramics from the Shang Dynasty's White Swallow, and broken porcelain from the Gok Yao kiln, among other treasures. In addition, there are more than 40 authentic calligraphic works of Zhao Tieshan, a great calligrapher of the Qing Dynasty, the history of the development of Xingyi Quan, an exhibition of root carving art, an exhibition of Taigu Palace Lanterns and an exhibition of the history of Taigu County in the Sanduo Hall. Now is working on the restoration of the west side of the Cao family garden, to open up a leisure place.