Zhencheng Lou
It is commonly called Bagua Lou, and situated in the mid-south of Hongkeng Village. The
building was jointly built by Lin Hongchao and his brothers of the 21st generation of the Lin
clan of Hongkeng Village in 1912 when the Republic of China was founded. It is known for
its grandeur and exquisitely versatile internal design. In terms of local architectural styles and
the colors of the gate, interior wall, ancestral hall and flower wall, its designer boldly adopted
the principle of unity and diversity, which is very much highlighted in Western architectural
aesthetics. Therefore, with very high aesthetic taste, it can be regarded as one of the masterpieces
of architecture that combine Western and Chinese techniques .
Facing the south and covering an area of 5000 square meters, this Tulou is composed of two
concentric circles of buildings. The earth-wood-structured outer ring building is four storeys
in height and 57.2 meters in diameter, with an inner-corridor layout, a two-side sloping roof of
tiles and a combination of the overhanging gable roof, the column and tie construction and the
post and lintel construction. The internal layout is made according to the principle of the Eight
Trigrams from the Chinese classic Book of Changes. The internal space is circularly divided into
eight equal units by grey-brick firewalls, each of which represents one of the Eight Diagrams,
that is, the sky, the swamp, the earth, the fire, the wind, the thunder, the mountain and the water.
Each portion is a unit having six rooms and forming an independent living environment when the
door is closed. However, when the door is opened, all the units are well communicated with one
another. On each floor, there are two halls and 44 rooms, and there are altogether 208 rooms in
the whole Tulou. A yard is formed between each unit of the 1st floor and the inner-ring patio. The
grey-brick partition wall of each unit is provided with an archway door, which makes the internal
corridors of different storeys well communicated. The 1st and 2nd floors have no windows, with
the former used for kitchens and dining rooms and the latter used as grain storage rooms. The
3rd and 4th floors are for bedrooms. The 1st floor of the inner ring corridor is paved with tabia,
while those of the upper storeys with thin grey bricks which have fire-resistant and soundproof
functions. Set under the eaves of the corridor on the 3rd and 4th floors, is an exquisite wooden
hand rail with the style of the traditional garden.
The outer ring building is equipped with four staircases. A double-leaf door is set on the east
and west sides respectively. The two side-doors are symmetrically opposite to each other, leading
to the east and west penthouses outside. The door frames are made of granite with door leaves
covered with iron sheets. The main gate and the entrance hall are located on the central axis line.
The main gate also has a granite frame with door leaves covered with iron sheets. Both sides of
the door frame are engraved with the words: “Establish and obey rules to become a useful person
of higher moral integrity”. The door head is inscribed with the name of the Tulou building.
Behind the outer ring building is a spacious hall with a wide entrance. A yard is enclosed
by it and the back wall of the inner ring building as well as the grey-brick partition walls on
two sides. There is a patio in front of the hall, the entrance of which has one archway door on
each side, leading to the internal corridor of the outer ring building. A shrine is placed in the
hall for worshiping Kwan-yin, on both sides of which is a couplet, reading: “Never idle around
regardless of being young or old” and “It turned out to be easy to become famous and you should
be concerned about the family and the nation”.
The inner ring building has two storeys and is of brick-and-wood structure, with a two-side
sloping roof of tiles and a combining structure of overhanging gable roof, the column and tie
construction and the post and lintel construction. There are two halls and eight rooms on every
floor. The inner ring links with the main building, i.e. ancestral hall, to form a courtyard with a
patio paved by granite. The first floor has no windows. Besides the ancestral hall on the north,
halls on the east, west and south and the stairway, the rest rooms serve as sitting rooms and
banquet rooms with a larger area. The front of the inner ring is a wooden gate in loose-leaf style
with wooden strips on its upper part for air and light inflow. All the door leaves can be open.
The hall on the South of the inner ring, which is also called middle lobby or middle hall, is
located on the central axis, covering an area equaling to two houses. It was separated with the
corridor of inner ring at the rear end by eight wooden through-carved loose-leaf gates which serve
not only as middle gate but as the screen wall. In ancient time, the middle gate was only opened
on grand festivals or to welcome important guests. The gate also represents a direct passage from
outer ring to inner ring. The hall has a front entrance door with stone doorframe facing the front
gate of the Tulou on the south. The horizontal inscribed board by Li Yuanhong, the president of
the Republic of China, is decorated on the door lintel, being accompanied with the couplet on
both sides, i.e. “ Attend to the state affairs; read the saints’ books.” A stone flight of steps is in
front of threshold. The front patio is flanked by the corridors leading to the outer ring.
The halls in strict symmetry are located on the east and west of the inner ring. They are also
called “Lu hall”, serving as the main corridor to link the east-west inner ring and outer ring. The
Chaolu hall and Xinglu hall are located respectively on the east and left of “Lu hall” and face
the side gates. The couplet on the stony column reads: “Reinforce order and discipline to train
virtuous talents” and “Identify warning and gnome in dream, return to real world to find reality.”
The former was written by Li Ruiqing, one of the five outstanding calligraphists at the beginning
of the Republic of China (the early 20th century).
The front entrance door, side corridors, entrance hall and the patio make up of a courtyard.
The outer and inner rings are separated by the courtyard. There are two wells called Yin-and-
Yang wells on the east and west sides. The flowerbed in the courtyard seems to blend into the
surroundings of inner courtyard, representing a landscape garden.
The corridor on the second floor of the inner ring is decorated with cast-iron railing of western
delicate pattern. The second floor was used for receiving guests in the past. The Kuokou Hall,
which covers an area equaling to the middle hall downstairs, stands on the front-oriented south.
However, the floor of Kuokou hall and parts of front-oriented corridors is 0.2 meters higher
than that of the marginal corridors. The hall severs as the pavilion for the elders and VIPs when
performances are on the show.
The ancestral hall is particularly eye-catching. It is located in the back side (the north) of the
inner ring with a 2-storey hall at the center. The roof of the ancestral hall is higher than that of the
inner ring. There are 4 circular moorstone-made columns in Western style as high as the eaves of
centric hall in the frontal site. The moorstone-made railings stand at two sides in front of the hall.
The hall’s opening is linked with stone stairway and the center of the hall by the patio covered
by tabia. All of this reflects the architectural features of ancient Greece. The front-oriented site of
the hall is in open style; the back-oriented site is decorated with two brick arches on both sides
linking with the corridors of the outer ring. Many calligraphic works of celebrities are decorated
on the back-oriented wall and wall at two sides. In terms of the difference with the ancestral halls
of other Tulou buildings, it reflects the combined China-West architectural style and not only
serves as the public place for the clan meeting, weddings, funerals, receiving and banqueting
guests, friends and the relatives, but also as a performance stage .
There are 4 stone columns standing before the ancestral hall, on which the couplet says:
Conduct filial piety to revitalize the clan”, “Practice economy to start career”, “Do not be dizzy with
success, nor discouraged by defeat”.
The hall possesses outstanding fireproofing function, comprising 8 units separated by brickmade
wall. If one certain unit be on fire, the fire flame would be separated by the fireproofing walls,
thus protecting the surrounding units from catching fire. The second, third and fourth floors of the
outer ring and the second floor of the inner ring, including the corridors, are covered by blue bricks.
Once the building is on fire, the blue bricks will spontaneously fall to put out the fire after the floor
slabs are burn down.
The 2-storey side buildings in lune shape as well as the brick and wood framework are
established on the east and west outside the building. With 6 bays, one side building serves as the
school while the other as tobacco cutter workshop. Each side building is enclosed by the brick-made
wall with patio inside, thus involving into an independent courtyard with an arch and linking with
the side gate of the outer ring.
The building has for the first time introduced Western architecture into the construction of
Hakka circular buildings and had certain influence in Yongding County. In 1985, the model of the
building was selected as one of Chinese architectural models and displayed on the Unite States (L.A.)
International Architectural Model Exhibition.
| |