Former Residence of Hu Xueyan

Hu Xueyan's former residence, adjacent to Hefang Street, is a luxurious mansion built by Hu Xueyan, a famous businessman in the late Qing Dynasty. Within this residence, from large pavilions and towers to small wood carvings and stone carvings, the materials and craftsmanship are extremely exquisite, especially the rockeries in the courtyard, which are uniquely and delicately built, fully demonstrating the art of gardening in Jiangnan.

The former residence was built during the Tongzhi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1872), and the mansion is divided into a central axis part and east and west side courtyards. Entering the main gate leads to the central axis area, composed of the sedan hall, the Hundred Lion Building, etc., which was once used for daily entertaining guests. Inside the sedan hall are two exquisitely crafted redwood official sedans, and the beams and frames in the hall are said to be entirely made of ginkgo wood, which is even more elaborate than the materials used in the Forbidden City.

The west side courtyard is Hu Xueyan's frequently visited garden, Zhiyuan, where pavilions, corridors, and winding bridges are all available, and the rugged rockeries make people experience the joy of walking through them. It is said that just building the rockeries in Zhiyuan cost more than 100,000 taels of silver at that time, and the "Yufeng Hall" on the rockery was even a tall building in Hangzhou city at that time.

The east side courtyard consists of halls such as Hele Hall, Qingya Hall, and Nanmu Hall, which were the living quarters of the master's family. The pillars of Hele Hall are made of Araucaria, the railings are made of red sandalwood, and the lattice windows are made of rosewood, etc. Each room has exquisite brick-carved door arches, depicting images of immortals, animals, and plants. The beams, window lattices, and carvings of Nanmu Hall are all made of precious nanmu wood, which can be called a marvelous building.

After Hu Xueyan's death, the former residence gradually fell into disrepair. Although most of the current buildings have been rebuilt and restored in modern times, walking through this masterpiece, which is comparable to a small palace, and listening to the guide tell the stories of those years, one can still feel the glorious life of a generation of red-topped magnates.