Huizhou Ancient City

Shexian was the seat of Huizhou prefecture for centuries, the administrative and cultural centre of the region whose merchants dominated Chinese commerce in the Ming and Qing, and its walled town keeps the prefectural yamen, the Xu Guo archway of 1584, a rare four-sided stone paifang built for a grand secretary, and streets of Huizhou buildings. A few kilometres away at Tangyue stands a group of seven stone archways erected between the Ming and Qing by one clan to mark filial piety, chastity, charity and official rank, the largest surviving group of its kind. The Huizhou style of architecture, carving, ink-making and opera all trace to this district.

What you actually see

• The Xu Guo archway - the rare four-sided stone paifang of 1584.
• The Tangyue archway group - seven memorial arches raised by one clan.
• The prefectural yamen - the restored administrative seat of Huizhou.
• The old streets - Huizhou shopfronts and carved detail in the walled town.

When to go

March to May and September to November; the town is quieter than the famous villages. Weekends bring domestic visitors. Summer is hot and humid, winter damp and cold.

Honest expectations

The yamen and parts of the wall are reconstruction. The Tangyue archways are a separate ticketed site a few kilometres away. Interpretation assumes knowledge of Confucian values the archways commemorate.

Nearby

Tunxi lies west; Hongcun and Xidi are northwest.