Architectural characteristics of Wang ancestral hall in Hengyang

Wang Ancestral Hall faces south and has a mixed structure of brick, stone and wood. There are 48 main columns, column base 13 door frames, all made of stone. The whole temple consists of five buildings: the main hall and the left and right halls, with stone pillars and wooden beams, hard hilltops and small blue tiles; There is a windy volcanic wall between buildings, with claws flying at both ends, and the height of the hall is 12 meters. On the central axis, from south to north, there are front and rear halls, left and right wing rooms and front cloisters. The front hall consists of the main hall, Zuo Xianda Hall and Right Jiexiao Hall, each with three bays and one depth; In the middle of the front hall is a stage with an octagonal algae well. The back hall consists of Chongben Hall, Zuo Xianda Hall and You Xiaojie Hall, each with three bays and two deep bays. There is a patio between the front hall and the back hall. On the left is Peihuai Pavilion, and on the right is Tangmei Pavilion, each with six rooms and a building. The main entrance is made of white marble, and the main entrance is engraved with "Hengyang No.1" in regular script, and Zhou Shi Erlong plays with high relief beads.

The Wang Ancestral Hall retains the architectural features and styles of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and some components are original objects of the Ming Dynasty. Carving on stone components and painting on wood components are rich and exquisite; Door couplets and column couplets preserve the original calligraphy of celebrities such as Shang Ruoshui, Zeng Chaojie and Luo Hongxian, the champion of the Qing Dynasty.

Known as "the first family in Hengyang", the Wang Ancestral Hall is located in the fishing village of Lijiang Town surrounded by Jiushui Qingshan. After entering the village, the water from nine long mouths flows directly into the meniscus pool in front of the temple, so there is a local saying that "Kowloon holds a saint".

Looking up, two-bedroom and five-bedroom buildings stand side by side, and the shrine of Hengyang No.1 is very eye-catching. The whole building is 62.5 meters long, 3 1.5 meters wide and 12 meters high, with a total area of about 1950 square meters. The central axis is divided into front and back halls from south to north, with the front hall as the main stage and the back hall as the worship hall. East and west have a wing, with Xianda Hall on the left and Xiaojie Hall on the right. Peihuai Pavilion and Gengmei Pavilion are located on both sides of the strait. 48 stone pillars support the hanging mountain top, which is magnificent.

The most striking thing is the bucket arch. There are five or six kinds of bucket arches here. For example, Ruyi Arch is composed of four layers of lattices, just like a magician's magic. Looking up, it is prismatic, and looking down, it becomes square. Variation bucket arch, cloud seam bucket arch, well-covered bucket arch and spiral bucket arch have different styles, exquisite design and ingenious workmanship, which fully embodies the industrious wisdom and artistic creativity of the ancient Han working people. Experts believe that these arches are comparable to those of the Forbidden City, and it is hard to imagine how they were built.

"The Wangs ancestral temple is full of flowers" is a popular local mantra. The white marble stone carving and two dragons playing with pearls displayed on the plaque at the main entrance are lively. A pair of stone lions on both sides of the ancient drum, with Feng Dan Chaoyang on the front. On the other hand, wild deer contain flowers, magpies contain plums, egrets collect flowers, or white cranes contain books. Look at each other intimately under the neck of the double unicorn, as if whispering. The eaves rise slightly like cornices. There are carved flowers under the eaves, and there are carved flowers in the temple. Stone carvings are found all over doorframes, doorsills, stone pillars and plinths, and there are many forms such as relief, intaglio, positive engraving and line engraving. Even the eaves of tiles are finely carved, with elegant patterns and skillful knives. There are more than 100 painted color shapes on the wall, and the Eight Immortals cross the sea. There is an aunt, ready to go; There is a poor peach garden; There is a vivid Gu Chenghui. The paintings on the ceiling and the beams are exquisite and ingenious, with dragons and phoenixes flying, tigers and leopards still singing, flowers, birds, insects and fish lifelike. More than 300 decorative woodcuts are exquisite. The octagonal building on the stage is a colorful place to compete for kuixing. "Who lived there at first; Lifelong civilization. "In the Ming Dynasty, the Yang engraved column inscribed by Zhan Ruoshui, a senior minister, was engraved with exotic flowers and grasses, which were colorful. The patterns on both sides of the woodcut break the symmetrical pattern and have nothing in common, showing a variety of artistic beauty. The wooden decoration is all carved and painted, and the expression is realistic. Being in a shrine is like entering an art palace of flowers, which shows the wisdom and superb architectural skills of the ancient Han working people. Wang's ancestral hall took more than 400 years to build, and the overall concept runs through it, which shows the ingenuity of engineering designers.

Wang Ancestral Hall not only retains the ancient Han architectural art, but also has rich and colorful calligraphy. The five characters "Hengyang first" were written in the history of Hengzhou magistrate, with black characters on a white background, vigorous and dignified, and wonderful. Coupled with the couplets of "loyalty and filial piety in ancient and modern times, cultivating others from generation to generation", it is even more glorious. "There are many surnames, and the light is gathered in a hundred miles; Sleeping in the hall is clear, and the color of the four townships comes in. ""Spring grass pond, a fish stream with new green water; More than 20 couplets, such as Swallow in Painting Hall and Bird-recognizing Clothes of the Millennium King, were written by celebrities such as Shangshu, Champion, Cabinet Zhongshu, Secretariat and Magistrate since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and they are excellent calligraphy works.

Wang Ancestral Hall not only preserves 93 volumes of Wang genealogy with academic research value, but also records a large number of poems and local folk customs of social elites in past dynasties, reflecting the brilliant glory of Chinese national culture. It is no exaggeration to say that the Wang Ancestral Hall is an extremely rich art treasure house in Hengyang.