Nanxun Ancient Town

Nanxun Ancient Town is located in Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province. Since its establishment as a town in the Southern Song Dynasty, it has prospered due to the silk trade. From the Ming and Qing dynasties to the Republic of China period, it was one of the wealthiest towns in the Jiangnan region, and there was a folk saying that "the whole city of Huzhou is not worth half a town of Nanxun." Rivers run through the town, and rows of old houses with white walls and dark tiles line both banks. Compared with other ancient water towns in Jiangnan, what makes Nanxun unique is its Chinese-Western hybrid architectural style—the silk merchants of Nanxun accumulated enormous wealth through international trade and also brought Western architectural elements back to their hometown. Many mansions and gardens incorporated Western columns, stained glass, and other components into traditional Jiangnan architecture, which is quite rare among ancient towns in Jiangnan.

The core attractions of the ancient town are concentrated along the river on South East Street and South West Street, and it is relatively convenient to start touring from Little Lotus Villa. Little Lotus Villa is the private garden of Liu Yong, a great wealthy man of Nanxun. In the garden, the lotus pond, Taihu stone rockeries, and flowers and trees set each other off beautifully, and it is a representative of the ancient town's garden views. The adjacent Jiaye Hall Library was built during the Republic of China period by Liu Chenggang, grandson of Liu Yong. It was once a large-scale private library in modern China, and the building itself also presents a Chinese-Western hybrid style, with a two-story corridor-style pavilion surrounding the courtyard, and the doors and windows on the ground floor are hollow-carved with seal-script characters, very exquisite. Walking north along the river, attractions such as Zhang Shiming's Former Residence, Liu's Ti Hao, Qiushu Li, Guanghui Palace, and the Silk Industry Guild Hall are distributed in sequence on both sides of the street. Zhang Shiming's Former Residence is known for its exquisite wood carvings and Western glass windows, and is a typical example of Chinese-Western hybrid architecture; Liu's Ti Hao likewise blends Chinese and Western architectural elements and has a distinctive style. Continue north to the end of South East Street, and on the opposite bank of the river are the Hundred-Room Tower and Zhang Jingjiang's Former Residence. The traditional dwellings of the Hundred-Room Tower stretching along the river have a strong sense of daily life. In the early morning and at dusk, you can see locals living by the river in their everyday water-town life, making it suitable for strolling and taking photos. The ancient town as a whole is not large, and a quick tour takes about half a day, but if you want to savor the architectural details of the residences and gardens in each place, it is recommended to allow more ample time.