FEATURE
hutong heritage preserving the courtyards by Steven Schwankert
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pened in November with funding and support from the Prince’s Charities Foundation China and the Chaoyangmen local government, Shijia Hutong Museum is the first facility in Beijing specifically established to preserve hutong history. While the capital is dotted with courtyards offered protection either as outstanding examples of hutong homes or for their famous previous occupants, only this museum has been set aside as a model hutong in its own right. About 200 meters north of contemporary Jinbao Jie and the Dongdan shopping area, this part of town
march 2014
photos: mitchell pe masilun
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may not evoke the hutong atmosphere more familiar to residents of Gulou. However, Shijia Hutong itself has been protected for its entire length, stretching about one kilometer from Dongsi Nandajie/Dongdan on its western side to Chaoyangmen Nanxiaojie in the east. With Beijing potentially set to lose as much as 20 percent more of its remaining hutongs, the museum’s opening couldn’t come at a better time to foster appreciation of the city’s most distinctive style of architecture, and along with it, a neighborhood way of life that has disappeared from a city the population of which has grown 20 times over the last 60 years. The former residence of two well-known writers, Chen Xiying and Ling Shuhua, the courtyard at 24 Shijia Hutong is actually unorthodox in that the visitor enters via a northfacing door, whereas most hutong homes specifically face south to keep out cold winter winds and northern barbarians. The doorway features the customary step, the height of which denoted the homeowner’s rank (that’s why doorframes at the Forbidden City are like hurdles). The displays are presented in clear English and Chinese. Many of the museum’s multimedia displays are also bilingual, although finding the English menu may require staff assistance. Most of Beijing’s hutongs date to the Yuan or Mongol dynasties, and a panel near the entrance of the first display hall speculates that the term hutong comes from the Mongolian word for “well.” Other possible explanations include 13th century pronunciation of the word for “alley,” passed down through the ages. The name Shijia Hutong is believed to originate from that of a late Ming dynasty official, Shi Kefa, whose family lived in the area. Beijing was later subdivided and local control given to Qing dynasty military officials, known as “bannermen”. The bordered white banner flew over this particular hutong. Another panel discusses how Beijing’s hutong-based city planning is much like that of Manhattan, on a northsouth grid that made navigation easy. Using this type of