Temple of Chen Family, Guangzhou

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The Chen Clan Academy was built in 1890 during the Qing Dynasty. With a total area of 15000 square meters, it is one of the scarce clan ancestral temples in China. Today, it is a museum exhibiting masterpieces of stone carving, wood carving, brick carving, ivory carving and other traditional crafts.

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The Guangdong Museum of Folk Art is housed inside the Chen Clan Academy and displays many wonderful cultural relics and works of folk art from the province. Exhibits on display include fans made from peacock feathers and palm leafs, ceramics, ivory, glassware, lacquerware and calligraphy paintings. More photo's can be found in one of my travelogues.

Open: 8.30am-5.30pm daily. Admission: RMB10.

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The Chen Clan Academy was located outside the west gate of the city and built between 1888 and 1894. Contributed by the Chen families in seventy-two counties of Guangdong Province, the academy served as the hall for ancestor worship as well as temporary residence for examination or litigation. Covering a total area of 15,000 square metres, the academy is a symmetrical complex comprising 19 single buildings in a square form interspaced by courtyards and connected by covered verandas. The architectural decorations such as the wood carvings, brick carvings, stone carvings, ceramic sculptures, iron castings and paintings are amazingly detailed and elaborate in their design. The figures on the roof ridges adopt themes from mythology and classical literature. The academy holds the Guangdong Museum of Folk Art which displays cultural relics and works of folk art from around the province. More photos of the buildings can be found in my travelogues.

Open: 8.30am-5.30pm daily. Admission: RMB10.

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One of the best preserved architecture building of Guangdong province. Built in the late 19th century as an ancestral temple of the Chen Family, it is now converted into Museum of Guangdong Folk Arts and Crafts.

Besides the beautiful halls and courtyards, there are elaborate woodcarvings and stone carvings that still survived the attacks and damages done during the Cultural revolution.

Worthy of a visit while in Guangzhou.

Around the end of the 19th century, the Chen family from the Guangdong Province at the raised money to fund the building of this grand temple. It was erected as a place of worship to the ancestors. This design is an excellent example of South China architecture.

Today the temple houses an interesting museum of folk art and crafts.

Within the museum are carvings made from limestone, wood, iron and stone along with other decorative pieces. All set out to depict historical events. The whole complex covers an area of 10,000 sq metres and is made up of nine main halls and six courtyards.

The Chen Family Temple was built as a collective effort by the Chen families from 72 counties all over Guangdong Province at the end of the 19th century during the reign of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty. The temple was built to honor and worship their ancestors. It was also used to house Chen family members who came from all over the province to sit for the imperial examinations. That is why it is also known as the Chen Family Academy. Today, it is the largest and best preserved example of the architecture and artistry of the time in all of Guangdong Province.

This is a really unique experience in that you get to walk through the Chen Family House in its restored glory. It is almost like walking through a living museum. I really enjoyed seeing the restored details of the architecture. Most of all, I think that it helped me to feel in touch with my heritage like I had never been able to in the United States. Even though I have seen countless pieces of Chinese art and furniture, what really impacted me was the feeling the setting evoked. When you walk into the courtyard, you have a sense of time slowing and changing. You can imagine what life was like in that time...what it felt like on hot days or what it felt like on rainy days. It was just a really neat experience.

Brilliant display of Chinese arts in this large, detail-rich temple. The roof contains scenes from the epic 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' but there is much more and even a museum and excellent gift shop.