Eight Great Alleys' Dusty Past Affairs

Author: Zhen Xingqi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: The Eight Great Alleys are a term for the old Beijing red-light districts, located west of Guanyin Temple Street in Qianmen's Dashilan. "Eight" is a figurative expression, as the area has at least fifteen alleys that were part of Beijing's red-light districts. The eight officially recognized alleys are: Baishun Alley, Yanzhi Alley, Hanjia Lane (now Hanjia Hutong), Shaanxi Lane, Stone Alley, Wangguofu Slant Street (now Zongshu Slant Street), Zhuji Alley, and Lishamao Alley (now Dali Alley and Xiaoli Alley).
The Eight Great Alleys has never been an official place name. In the past, when a man said he was going to the Eight Great Alleys, it meant he was telling you what he wanted to "do" rather than where he was going.
The architecture of the Eight Great Alleys blends Chinese and Western styles, brick and wood, courtyards and buildings, commercial and residential spaces, large and small, with interiors and exteriors intertwined. Public spaces and private domains were mixed together, with the poor and the wealthy intermingling. The author searched through countless houses for clues of the former brothels—second-floor small buildings, remnants of door lintels, round doorways, round windows. For example, Yixiang Yuan, where the famous courtesan Sai Jinhua once lived, is now Shaanxi Lane Hotel; Yunji Ban, where the courtesan Xiao Fengxian resided, is now a courtyard housing complex; and the small building at 11 Cherry Slant Street, where Cai E and Xiao Fengxian lived together, is now Changgong Hotel.
The buildings presented in this book, along with the history and culture they embody, have either been irreversibly lost, are currently disappearing, or are about to vanish. No one can say for sure what the future holds.
The Eight Great Alleys are a term for the old Beijing red-light districts, located west of Guanyin Temple Street in Qianmen's Dashilan. "Eight" is a figurative expression, as the area has at least fifteen alleys that were part of Beijing's red-light districts. The eight officially recognized alleys are: Baishun Alley, Yanzhi Alley, Hanjia Lane (now Hanjia Hutong), Shaanxi Lane, Stone Alley, Wangguofu Slant Street (now Zongshu Slant Street), Zhuji Alley, and Lishamao Alley (now Dali Alley and Xiaoli Alley).
The Eight Great Alleys has never been an official place name. In the past, when a man said he was going to the Eight Great Alleys, it meant he was telling you what he wanted to "do" rather than where he was going.
The architecture of the Eight Great Alleys blends Chinese and Western styles, brick and wood, courtyards and buildings, commercial and residential spaces, large and small, with interiors and exteriors intertwined. Public spaces and private domains were mixed together, with the poor and the wealthy intermingling. The author searched through countless houses for clues of the former brothels—second-floor small buildings, remnants of door lintels, round doorways, round windows. For example, Yixiang Yuan, where the famous courtesan Sai Jinhua once lived, is now Shaanxi Lane Hotel; Yunji Ban, where the courtesan Xiao Fengxian resided, is now a courtyard housing complex; and the small building at 11 Cherry Slant Street, where Cai E and Xiao Fengxian lived together, is now Changgong Hotel.
The buildings presented in this book, along with the history and culture they embody, have either been irreversibly lost, are currently disappearing, or are about to vanish. No one can say for sure what the future holds.