Chaozhou Alcove: the spiritual support of the people of Chaoshan Giaoji

It seems that all residential areas have the hobby of comparing with the royal family, and Chaoshan residential area also has the saying of "Chaoshan Alcove, Royal Palace". Come to the local, more people told is that the villagers of Chaoshan originally that is the royal family, was relegated to this, but the original temperament can not be abandoned, they will build a house so that there is a hand to the world, only in the Peach Blossom Garden of the intention to listen to the amusement, from the unquestionable.

The Chaoshan people as one of the three major ethnic groups in Guangdong Province, with the Guangfu, Hakka side by side, very distinctive, belongs to the Fukuo folk, by the Min Yue ethnic group and the two Jin dynasty since the migration into the region of the Central Plains of the Han people fusion and become extremely adventurous, good at business, known as "Chinese Jews".

Recently, there is a Chaoshan dialect movie "Dad, I will be able to" quite a topic in Guangdong, the shooting location is in the Chaoshan region of the town of Jinzao, Chaoshan characteristics of the building "downhill tiger" in the film is a major highlight. The "Downhill Tiger" is one of the basic forms of Chaoshan residential houses, also known as the climbing lion, under the double tiger, is a form of triple courtyard, because of its high back and low front, as if a tiger descending from the mountain and so named, the center of the patio.

The basic form of the "four points of gold", the Department of the quadrangle, because each of its four corners has a room in the shape of the word "gold" pressure angle named. After the hall ancestor worship, on both sides of the "big room" elders live, foyer on both sides of the "lower room" late and servants living, patio around the corridor of the north and south halls, some also have two small rooms for the kitchen or firewood room, also known as the "Ger Zai Gzai". There is a side door leading to the outside between "Gezai" and the big room, called "Zisunmen", which is taken as the entrance and exit of many children and grandchildren. Most of the other dwellings are developed by combining the four-pointed gold as the basic unit. The ancestral halls and family temples in Chaoshan are expanded on the basis of the four-pointed gold, similar to the architectural pattern of the capital.

Teochew is concerned about the housing north-south, open in the middle of the courtyard patio, windows open only to the inner court, geomancy, in order to "gather wealth", as the so-called "where the house to the patio for the wealth, in front of the front of the house for the case of the mountain. The width of the patio in the center, gathering wealth." "Wealth" from the door or from the upper sky down to accumulate in the patio, and then through the doors and windows of each room "suck" into the house.

Architecture, Chaoshan region, low latitude, the sun's altitude angle is large, radiant heat, combined with the southern climate, humidity, hot and stuffy indoor air, residential sunscreen, sunshade, heat insulation is particularly important. In the residential area, in order to obtain good natural ventilation, first of all, there must be a good orientation, in order to obtain the wind conditions. In the case that the orientation and wind-induced conditions are already available, the ventilation effect inside the house will depend on the layout of the plan. The Chaoshan houses have adopted a combination of halls, patios and passages to organize the natural ventilation, which is very scientific.

The local love of Feng Shui is almost paranoid, so Geomancy has been flourishing here for a long time. However, this simple aesthetics, rather than superstition, is what the Chaoshan people never want to let go of, the obsession with pattern, a perfect combination of folk beauty and the science of human habitation.

Teochew Alcove adjacent to each other, Alcove side of the head and tail, the Teochew people live in clusters, the clan will have a shrine, standing in the Teochew plains for hundreds of years between the lapel mountains and the water, and to this day, the Teochew rich merchants still love to return to their hometowns to cover the house, and according to the traditional pattern of the construction of the house.

The ultimate pursuit of beauty of the Chaoshan people, in addition to the practicality of local homes, more artistic, humanistic feelings are not high in the temple, but in the homes of ordinary people.

Jieyang residential roofs are mostly covered with gray tiles, Teochew is generally black and gray, Chaoyang Huilai area is red, the roof of the large residential buildings, generally placed a variety of gods and goddesses, flowers and trees, opera characters, or to create the auspicious atmosphere of the phoenix dance and dragon soar, or to tell the story of the story of the gods and people, known as the "Album of the Bird" world, the world of the "Album of the Bird". It is known as the world of "Bird Leather Album Flying". The decoration focuses on the doorway, roof and hall. Interior decorative buildings have wood and stone carvings, etc., carving fine, chic, with lacquer paintings and embedded ceramics, etc.. Eaves painted on the drawing of birds, insects and birds and animals, historical figures and stories, modeling vivid image, so that the whole building is rich in literary and artistic atmosphere.

Roof buildings, the most vulnerable to weather erosion, the use of construction of the usual shell ash material is easy to age, and the Chaoshan region by the erosion of the sea winds, aging is more prominent. Chaoshan ancestors of skilled craftsmen in accordance with the characteristics of the local abundance of colored porcelain, invented the use of broken colored porcelain, mixed with stucco sugar and tung oil, glued to the mud modeling, and become a variety of beautiful images, porcelain, although the wind, rain and sunshine, but can be new for a long time.

Mountain wall, refers to the two ends of the building's horizontal facade, the local colloquialism called "Alcove corner head", named after the five elements of gold, wood, water, earth, fire, there are five different shapes, and with a variety of colors of ceramic tiles to be inlaid to become the Teochew residential arts and crafts of a unique style, imposing, towering and upright! The imposing and towering "Alcove Jiao Tou" is the conspicuous place of Chaoshan houses, and the huge mountain wall is one of the signs that the Chaoshan people recognize their home.

Often calligraphy and paintings in front of the door, whether it is an old tiled house or a new building, the door will be inlaid with a plaque to indicate the identity of the owner's family or to pray for peace, for example, the family name of Zhang, the plaque is the "old family of the Qinghe" to indicate the origin of the family, the stone carvings on both sides of the "loyalty and filial piety to pass on to the family far, poetry and books to succeed the world long" and other sobering words. Following the world long" and so on, in and out of the children and grandchildren door, on both sides of the fire lane, a closer look at the eaves and paintings, or hope that the family peace and prosperity of the auspicious paintings and decorations, or for the literati or more elegant or more attached to the qin, chess, calligraphy and painting, or for the mother of the three migrations, twenty-four filial piety and other celebrities allusion to the performance of a certain cultural atmosphere and artistic taste. The master to use the taste of elegance to reflect their own and even the status of the entire clan.

From the mountain wall to the lintel, from the courtyard to the window, color painting, calligraphy, stone carving, wood carving are integrated into it, a single look, and no surprise, combined into one but let a person dazzled. It is not a wonder of its architecture, but a wonder of its skill, but there is something else in the square inches.

The Teochew traditionally does not emphasize education, but never forget the intention of poetry and calligraphy, through the mural carving of historical stories and calligraphy, conveying their philosophy of life and the family descendants of the requirements of the world.

If you ask the young people in Chaoshan, they may not be able to answer what is "downhill tiger" and "four points of gold", but most of the families are still living, which may be the charm of the Chaoshan houses. In the kilns, yurts have become attractions need, pretentious to meet tourists from all over the world, the Chaoshan people are still stubbornly living in their Chaozhou Alley, up to the sky, in and out of the children and grandchildren's door, endless, cozy and poetry.

Talking about architecture, must be said to Chenghai, an attraction - Chen Cihong former residence, Thai overseas Chinese businessman returned to his hometown to build their own mansions, known as the small Imperial Palace in Chaoshan, in Chenghai District, Shantou City, Guangdong Province, Longdu Town, the former United States Village, was built by the expatriate compatriots Chen Cihong family. Architectural style of Chinese and Western, the traditional "team trailer" combined with Western-style buildings, decorated with pavilions, corridors and bridges, winding, known as the "Lingnan first overseas Chinese residence", detailed analysis of the attractions of the countless people, will not repeat here.

A single thing, there have been tourists to the former U.S. village, see the roadside, there are two full of red flowers of the golden phoenix tree, in the huge canopy under the cover of a row of simple Chaoshan homes, lintel on the lintel of the "Confucianism," "Langzhong first," the words, can not distinguish whether it is an attraction, quite a bit. Can not distinguish whether the attractions, quite puzzled, to be further ahead to see "Shoukangli" words, will be sure that this place for the "Chen Cihong residence", so very excited to start taking pictures, actually made a joke, the original is just an ordinary residence, there are still people living in use. After the embarrassment, visible in the eyes of outsiders, Chaoshan common residential style can be used as a few attractions.

If you go to the former residence of Chen Cihong visit will understand more, the meaning of the Forbidden City, never because of the luxury and grandeur, at least not only, the so-called "King's House of the capital, Chaoshan people's homes," aptly named. Chaoshan houses are more of traditional symbols and heritage, in meticulous accordance with the rules passed down from generation to generation, but in copying the "team of horses trailer" "downhill tiger", and continue to absorb the strengths of foreign cultures, and for their own use, integrated into their own living room. To the tradition to the source, to the West to the classic, exploring the art of living in line with the progress of the times. Chen Cihong residence was built at the beginning of the last century, has a large number of porcelain tiles, floor tiles and other decorative materials floor tiles, are imported from foreign countries, East meets West, exquisite. Chaoshan region of the ordinary homes are so, both absorbed the Western decorative concepts, but also the fine craftsmanship of the Teochew artisans.

The Teochew people are courageous, not afraid of the waves, and have traveled to other places for hundreds of years, all over the world. Countless successful Chaoshan merchants, every year Qingming, tens of thousands of overseas Chinese return to their homeland to pay homage to their ancestors, shocking. Many wealthy businessmen outside the development, but are willing to return to their hometown to build a courtyard of their own, not only the "birds love the old forest, pond fish think of the old abyss" of the local sentiment, can not be cut off, but also y engraved into the blood "I am Chaoshanese" sense of pride and cultural identity! The fact that they have been in the same place for so many generations makes them look back to their hometown with sincerity.

Architecture is a collection of technology and art, Chaozhou Alley as a residence, the first sure is its use value, as a child, it is where the parents, shelter from the wind and rain; grow up and leave the hometown, it is a nostalgia of the trust, is not enough for outsiders to say the hometown, the Teochew people this way will be the way of governance into the life of the home of the building, the homes have long exceeded the connotation of the simple buildings, more than Artificial with formalin soaked in a deteriorated commercial city can be compared to those who have no soul, only empty shells for posterity, Chaoshan is undoubtedly personality and vitality of the ancient city. In all parts of the overwhelming development of the ancient town economy today, to see the unique Chaozhou Alley, may wish to think more about how to give life to tradition.