Baxi Ancient Town · Ningchang

Author: Aman
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-09-01
Features: This set of illustrated books on ancient towns is an effort to contribute our modest share. It includes 8 books, each featuring 100 banners and 150 photographs, along with corresponding 50,000 to 60,000 words of descriptive text to introduce a historic and cultural ancient town in Chongqing. We aim to achieve a balance where the realism and presence of the images can bring the depth and transcendence of the text into a specific temporal and spatial framework; at the same time, the text fosters divergent thinking, allowing the visual and intuitive nature of the images to be interpreted in multiple dimensions. This goal has been largely achieved. Therefore, this series not only helps in calling for people to understand, appreciate, and protect ancient towns but also contributes to enhancing cultural awareness, promoting tourism development, and advancing urban construction. Even when a certain ancient town inevitably disappears, this series can serve as a historical record.
The BaYu region is renowned for its majestic mountains and rivers, as well as its profound history and rich cultural heritage. From the indigenous peoples who established villages on this land around 4,000 years ago to the emergence of cities along the riverbanks during the Spring and Autumn period, and from the promotion of Gongzhou to Chongqing Fu in the eighth month of the sixteenth year of the Chunxi era of the Southern Song Dynasty (September 18, 1189), to its becoming the largest commodity trading hub in eastern Sichuan during the Jiaqing era of the Qing Dynasty, the establishment of market towns has evolved over time. As regional economic and social hubs, many of these towns originated during the Qin and Han dynasties, flourished during the Tang and Song dynasties, or reached their peak during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Each is an important cultural symbol of the evolution of BaYu civilization and deserves careful attention.
Disappeared ancient towns cannot be reborn, cloned, or replaced, making the remaining ones even more precious. Most of Chongqing's historic and cultural ancient towns were built near mountains and rivers, reflecting the unique architectural style of the BaYu region while also absorbing cultural influences from areas such as Huguang, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang. They embody the humanistic pursuit of harmonious coexistence between people and nature. From the grand selection of locations based on feng shui principles to the intricate components and decorations of mountain walls, ridges, eaves columns, and door lattices, almost all residential buildings, ancestral halls, guild halls, temples, theaters, enclosed gateways, covered bridges, cobblestone streets, one-sided streets, and wind and rain bridges are simple yet functional. The freestanding houses, suspended wooden structures, and open-air rain shelters, in particular, showcase ingenuity amidst casual design. The architectural art seamlessly blends with the natural environment, creating a lively and charming atmosphere.
Over the centuries, the indigenous people of multiple ethnicities and migrating settlers have lived and thrived in these towns, weaving countless simple yet beautiful stories. Under the relentless pressure of modernization, they face the risk of disappearing at any moment. However, as long as they endure, the cultural heritage they carry—such as architecture, history, art, and folk customs—remains visible, serving not just as a means for urban dwellers to seek a return to nature but also as a profound cultural legacy.
This illustrated book, with its rich visuals and lyrical prose, vividly recreates the original appearance and folk customs of ancient towns. It delves deeply into the ethnic transformations and historical reforms of these towns, arguing for the practical significance of their development. The cultural analysis of suspended wooden structures in ancient towns presented in this book also holds academic value.