Spatial Analysis of the World Cultural Heritage Ancient Village of Xidi - Spatial Research 1

Author: Duan Jin, Gong Kai, Chen Xiaodong, Zhang Xiaodong, Peng Song / Country:
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: 2.3 Development Status of Space in Xidi Village During the Ming and Qing Dynasties
After the middle period of the Ming Dynasty and into the Qianlong and Jiaqing years of the Qing Dynasty, Xidi gradually developed into its peak stage. Village construction became increasingly complete, with the street and alley network, as well as clan and ritual buildings, forming a certain system. The layout and scale also gradually settled into fixed models.
2.3.1 Development of Residential Forms
The residential forms during the early settlement period are, and we can only infer their forms based on the population composition, which is a combination of the dry-latticed architecture of the Shan Yue ethnic group and the traditional timber structures of the southward Han people. After the middle and late Ming Dynasty, the residential forms in Huizhou had become relatively standardized. The increasing density of residential buildings and the accumulation of economic wealth in the village led to the towering Fenghuo (fire-walled) mountainside becoming a typical feature of Huizhou-style residences. The high walls and deep alleys clearly demonstrated the inward-looking and defensive nature of the residences. One reason for this was that adult males often worked and traded elsewhere, leaving only the elderly, women, and children at home, making safety a need.
There are over 200 ancient residences remaining in Xidi, of which more than 150 are well-preserved and have been measured and recorded. Most are residential buildings from the Qing Dynasty, with a few exceptions, such as the Yanggao Hall by the stream in the front, which was built in the late Ming Dynasty. In terms of floor plans, the basic unit of ancient residential courtyards is the standard three-hall courtyard: the main hall, side wings, and the enclosed courtyard. This common form—known locally as "Sanjia Hall" (three-hall hall)—has three variations of the basic unit: facing, "H"-shaped, and (connected). The width of most residences is three rooms, as the government had long restricted the building forms of the common people as early as the Ming Dynasty. According to the "Ouyu" (Treatise on Transportation and Clothing) in the "Ming Shi" (History of the Ming Dynasty), "The houses of commoners were standardized in the 26th year of Hongwu, with no more than three rooms and five bays." Therefore, as the scale of the courtyard grew, the floor plans would adopt facing or "H"-shaped forms, while vertically, they would increase from one to two or even add non-major functional three-story extensions. When economic strength reached a certain level, and there was a greater demand for courtyard scale, multiple basic units would be combined. The combination methods are very flexible and cannot be summarized simply as serial or parallel connections. Many courtyards also include study rooms, flower halls, and private gardens, which are relatively lively architectural elements. The main buildings, along with irregular kitchens and courtyards, usually occupy the entire street and form winding alley spaces. Taking the block of Beiren Hall, where Hu Guansan lived in his later years, as an example, to analyze the courtyard combination methods in Xidi (Figure 2.7). P14