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Hongcun

For the village in Shandong, see Hongcun (Shandong).
Hongcun
宏村
Village
Hongcun
Hongcun
Map
Coordinates: 30°00′12″N 117°59′26″E / 30.0033°N 117.9905°E / 30.0033; 117.9905
CountryPeople's Republic of China
ProvinceAnhui
Prefecture-level cityHuangshan City
CountyYi County
TownHongcun Town
Official nameAncient Villages in Southern Anhui – Xidi and Hongcun
TypeCultural
Criteriaiii, iv, v
Designated2000
Reference no.1002
RegionAsia

Hongcun (Chinese: 宏村; pinyin: Hóngcūn; lit. 'Hong village') is a village in Hongcun Town, Yi County, Huangshan City[1][2] in the historical Huizhou region of southern Anhui Province, China, near the southwest slope of Mount Huangshan.

Together with Xidi, the village became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000, because of its exceptional preservation of the architecture and city plan of a rural village in feudal China.[3][4] Scenes from the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon were filmed on location in Hongcun.

History and city planning

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Hongcun was established in 1131 by Wang Wen, a general during the Southern Song dynasty.[5] Like the neighboring Hu family in Xidi, the Wang family became prosperous merchants and the city grew in size from 1400 to about 1900. The architecture and carvings of the approximately 150 residences dating back to the Ming and Qing dynasties are said to be among the best of their kind in China.[citation needed] One of the biggest of the residences open to visitors, Chenzhi Hall, also contains a small museum.

The village is arranged in the shape of an ox with the nearby hill (Leigang Hill) interpreted as the head, and two trees standing on it as the horns. Four bridges across the Jiyin stream can be seen as the legs whilst the houses of the village form the body. Inside the “body”, the Jiyin stream represents the intestines and various lakes such as the “South Lake” (Nanhu) form the other internal organs. A 400-year-old waterway connects each residential household to the two water sources in the town, with most of the streets built alongside them.[5] These streets are paved with original Yi County granite.[citation needed] The usual residences of the town contain a central courtyard surrounded by symmetrical bays of rooms, although there are much larger and more private houses for the weather citizens.[5]

Panorama of Hongcun
Hongcun, Anhui Province, China.

Transportation

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Ancient Villages in Southern Anhui – Xidi and Hongcun.

Buses are available from Huangshan Bus Station. There are also buses from Tangkou Bus Station to Hongcun. Tangkou Bus Station is at the foot of Huangshan Scenic Area.[6]

References

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  1. ^ 2017年统计用区划代码和城乡划分代码：宏村镇 [2017 Statistical Area Numbers and Rural-Urban Area Numbers: Hongcun Town] (in Simplified Chinese). National Bureau of Statistics of the People's Republic of China. 2017. Retrieved 24 July 2018. 341023101200 122 宏村村委会
  2. ^ 宏村镇 [Hongcun Town] (in Simplified Chinese). XZQH.org. 18 September 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2018. 341023101200 122宏村
  3. ^ "Ancient Villages in Southern Anhui - Xidi and Hongcun". UNESCO. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  4. ^ "Xidi and Hongcun Villages". China.com. 2008-09-16. Retrieved 2008-10-08. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ a b c "Ancient Villages in Southern Anhui - Xidi and Hongcun" (PDF). UNESCO World Heritage Centre. 2 December 2000.
  6. ^ "Hongcun" ChinaTour.Net Accessed 2014-11-23

Notable people

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