Fengjing Ancient Town [Shanghai]

Fengjing Town has a history of civilization over 1500 years, and it was ever divided and governed separately by Wu State and Yue State during the Spring and Autumn Period. As a typical market town south of the Yangtze River , Fengjing has long been known as "pass two bridges within a few steps, and a chance glimpse catches ten rivulets" for its surrounding water network and numerous rivulets inside. There are many small polder dikes in the town which are shaped like lotus leaves. The whole town is rich in trees and buildings with gurgling water and elegant lotus here and there. So it is also known as "Town of Lotus ".

Entering a grand, partitioned stone archway inscribed 'Fengjing' in flourish Chinese calligraphy, then walking along the town river surrounding the ancient town and its branch, you will reach the stone archway inscribed 'Dongzha' in Chinese characters; after the grey brick and stone paved streets, and a series of stone bridges, you will catch the view of an ancient a+rchitectural complex that is spreading sprawling along the 2.5km long river street. Every morning, tea shops on bridge ends will be open to business with tea aroma drifting about; fishers row by buildings and stone piers to reach the covered corridors by the river to form a fish market. All these are well reflected in the folk song "fresh-water snails are tasty in January, clams are delicious in February, turtle is the most sturdy in March---"

After the stone archway is Shengchan Street where along the winding river is a long black-tile-covered corridor with red lanterns hanging under the eaves. You probably can't help thinking of the saying 'an ancient lane extending to the secret wonderland'. During Ming and Qing Dynasties, rice stores were one next to another on the street with covered corridors established in every frontage. But when it came to the recent times, almost all of them were destroyed by weathering. The existing corridors were reconstructed. At ordinary times the young go to work and the grannies will go to the river, killing fishes, washing rice and vegetable or washing clothes. Those old houses don't have magnificent fronts yet walking on the long and narrow lanes, you can still get a glimpse of the deep yards. The river streets in Fengjing are all in the pattern that one bank is opposite to the back of buildings yet another faces the front. On the opposite of the river are old houses against the river on Heping Street . The east of the street is a well-painted building with rake angle on the stone base. It is an ancient theater built outdoor for stage performances. China 's drama took shape in Song Dynasty and Jin Dynasty. This ancient theater was situated in the square of the Town God's Temple , with one frontage on street and one frontage on river. When there is a performance, people can watch it in boat. The fair of Town God's temple appeared in Qing Dynasty. This grand occasion was recorded in the history of Fengjing that when it was the Town God's Temple Fair , young men and women would go out to visit the performance over miles, and the river was obstructed for so many boats. Then venders, Beijing opera troupes and circuses would swarm into Fengjing, bustling with noise and excitement. The ancient theater is 64m in width, 44m in depth and has a stage area of 28 square meters, with gable and hip roof, overhanging eaves and rake angle. Opposite to the theater is a row of old houses near the river serving as tea shop. You can select a window seat, and then you can enjoy the tea and the drama simultaneously or see the sight out of window.

Around the end of Bridge of Town God 's Temple on the east of the corridor is a well-marked western-style red gate, where is the former site of fire office of East District. It is also the relatively complete fire department of recent times kept in Shanghai . Berthed in the river before the gate is a red fireboat, the last one on water of Shanghai . " Sanbai Park ", or three-hundred park on Heping Street is a three-line house with stone gates. It is the general name of three exhibition halls with one hundred articles of folk-custom exhibited respectively, i.e. hundred-basket hall, hundred-lamp hall and hundred-trade hall.

The North Street is best preserved as an ancient commercial street. It is sandwiched in between two-storied buildings with wooden windows in natural color. Look up, you will find that only a narrow strip of sky is available. These building fronts are of all undiversified planar construction, it is hard to tell their features and scale. Yet watching them from their back in a boat, you will discover that all buildings are against the river and have different decorations like multiple eaves and tiles, arcade, or pavilions, etc. with stone steps paved to the piers. It is really a wonderful dwelling view of a water country.

The North Street was ever the gathering place of stores and workshops for developed handicraft industry. As early as Song Dynasty, there were handiworks like ironware, wood pieces, bamboo ware, farm tools and small -ware for daily use. When the weaving technology was introduced, spinning and weaving began popular here. During Ming and Qing Dynasties, Fengjing was included in the national production and trade center of cotton spinning and weaving and had the record "cloth was produced by the unit of ten thousands pieces per day". It was recorded that hundreds of cloth firms set branches in Songjiang, Fengjing and Zhujing, and following them were dye works, finishing works and merchants. At that time there were more than 200 hand-woven cloth firms in Fengjing Town . When it came to Qing Dynasty, many organizations were set up in Fengjing. The authorities in charge of the weaving in the south of Yangtze River also established institutions and workshops here to produce and acquire cotton textiles. Fengjing's cloth was popular throughout the country. In later Qing Dynasty, grains industry replaced descending hand-woven cloth trade and revitalized the industry and commerce of Fengjing. Fengjing also emerged as an important producing area of rice wine since the 1930s. Rice wine, and three important local specialties that enjoy a century history, i.e. Ding's Pork Knuckle , No.1 Scholar Paste and Dried Bean Curd, are praised together as "four treasures of Fengjing".

Surrounded by water, the ancient town ever had 52 bridges and yet has a dozen now. The oldest is Zhihe Bridge by the South Street . It was built in Yuan Dynasty, old, simple and solid with lichen growing in its stone seams. Its both ends are stone stairs and piers. Standing on the bridge, you will have a panoramic view with the plants, ancient houses and ports on both banks with Rainbow Bridge before and s stone bridge behind. Famous Ci-poem writer Shen Rongcheng said in his Folk Songs of Fengxi that "a swing is swinging by Rainbow Bridge , and it is much more beautiful when the Tomb-sweeping Day is coming'. When you come to the end of Rainbow Bridge , you will see the T-shaped town river with three bridges spanning over every branch. Opposite to Rainbow Bridge is Youhao Street , where you can appreciate the dwelling complex on both banks of the river, demonstrating the style of late Qing Dynasty. There is a saying going that "Zhouzhuang is famous for its double bridges while the three bridges of Fengjing are beyond comparison".

Fengjing has developed folk culture. Here is known as the cradle of famous Jinshan farmers' paintings, which have borrowed the essence of other folk arts like indigo print, furniture carving, kitchen mural, lantern, paper-cut, embroidery and weaving. Represented by the farmer painters in Fengjing, Jinshan farmers created the unique art of Jinshan farmers' paintings with dense folk elements, which have made great influence at home and abroad. On Heping Street stands the ancestral home of Cheng Shifa, a master of traditional Chinese painting. And on the North Street is the cartoonist Ding Cong's works exhibition hall. In Fengjing Town , you can appreciate farmers' paintings, Ding Cong's cartoons, Cheng Shifa's Chinese paintings and famous go-player Gu Shuiru's. These international influencing arts and works can be seen in a town, it is really a rare regional culture phenomenon in China .

The former site of a Qing Dynasty post office is at No. 92, Heping Street . The office has grey walls and black tiles in solid structure. Above its high door opening is the title of post office in striking Chinese characters. It is among the few sites of post offices left from Qing Dynasty in Shanghai . Fengjing Town also boasts its embracing of religions like Taoism, Buddhism, Catholicism and Christianity, which is unusual for an ancient town in the south of Yangtze River . You can visit those human landscapes such as Xingjue (Enlightenment) Buddhist Temple , Shi's Taoist Temple and Yu's Memorial Temple to experience the history of Fengjing Town which was ever divided and separately governed by Wu State and Yue State .