--- SEARCH ---
WEATHER
CHINA
INTERNATIONAL
BUSINESS
CULTURE
GOVERNMENT
SCI-TECH
ENVIRONMENT
LIFE
PEOPLE
TRAVEL
WEEKLY REVIEW
Learning Chinese
Learn to Cook Chinese Dishes
Exchange Rates
Hotel Service
China Calendar


Hot Links
China Development Gateway
Chinese Embassies
Info
FedEx
China Post
China Air Express
Hospitals in China
Chinese Embassies
Foreign Embassies
Golfing China
China
Construction Bank
People's
Bank of China
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China
Travel Agencies
China Travel Service
China International Travel Service
Beijing Youth Travel Service
Links
China Tours
China National Tourism Administration

Volunteer Creates Picture of the Past

Zheng Xicheng, once an ivory sculptor, has developed his own way to preserve the memories of the ancient siheyuan.

 

He does so by immortalizing them in exquisite pictures.

 

Zheng lives in his family's siheyuan in the Xintaicang area of Dongcheng District.

 

He recalls the courtyard was built by his ancestors in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Five large rooms line the northern part of the courtyard and a kitchen and a small storeroom fill the two corners of the southern section. Between the rooms is a small garden, where the fragrance of Chinese roses and orchids lingers in the air and a century-old jujube tree is still lush and heavy with fruit.

 

Zheng knows the courtyard, although beautiful and solid, is not on the protection list. Neither is the whole Xintaicang area.

 

Zheng said he has heard so many excuses to justify demolishing the area, from "the houses are too old" to claims that the narrow lanes pose a fire hazard.

 

"Beijing's siheyuan and hutong have survived for centuries even through chaotic wars. Why can't they survive today?" Zheng said.

 

He said local residents do not oppose renovations if ownership of the courtyard is respected and a plan exists for the neighborhood.

 

"Most residents here don't want to leave. If the policy is clear that the area is protected and will no longer be demolished, I will pledge at least 400,000 yuan (US$48,600) to renovate my courtyard and I have already drafted a blueprint," he said.

 

Zheng has now finished sketching nearly 100 siheyuan, some of which have vanished under the bulldozers and iron hammers.

 

"My conservationist friends call me if they hear about some places to be demolished. I take pictures of them for our descendants to see or research," he said.

 

"Beijing has become the latest arena for the heated debate over the centuries-old question of how China can move forward and still preserve its cultural identity," said Hua Xinmin, a leading conservationist and French writer brought up in a historic Beijing hutong or traditional alleyway.

 

"Perfect solutions are not so easy to find but at least don't so easily destroy what our ancestors have left for Beijingers," Hua said.

 

(China Daily August 13, 2003)

Space for City's Living History
Bulldozers Raze Old Beijing
Beijing in Largest Bid to Protect Unique Courtyard Houses
Hutong and Courtyard Protection in Beijing
Traditional Beijing Residences Listed for Key Protection
Plan for Protection of A Historical and Cultural Beijing
Print This Page
|
Email This Page
About Us SiteMap Feedback
Copyright © China Internet Information Center. All Rights Reserved
E-mail: webmaster@china.org.cn Tel: 86-10-68326688