Three Lanes and Seven Alleys

Sanfang Qixiang preserves a street pattern dating to the Tang and Song: a central axis with three lanes on one side and seven alleys on the other, lined with mansions behind whitewashed walls topped by curved horse-head gables in the Fujian manner. Around two hundred historic buildings survive across some forty hectares. The quarter's residents included a remarkable share of nineteenth and twentieth-century figures: Lin Zexu, the official who destroyed opium stocks at Canton; Yan Fu, who translated Huxley and Adam Smith into Chinese; the writer Bing Xin; and naval officers of the Fuzhou shipyard. Several houses are open as museums, and the main axis is now a commercial street.

History

The quarter keeps the walled-ward street plan, the lifang system, that goes back to the Tang dynasty, and its Ming and Qing houses were home over the centuries to some 400 rich and famous residents, which earned it the name Beverly Hills of imperial China. It was placed on UNESCO's tentative list in 2013, named a national historic and cultural street in 2015, and its restoration received an honourable mention in the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards that year (Wikipedia, Sanfang Qixiang).

The main sights

• The lane pattern - the Tang and Song layout of three lanes and seven alleys.
• The mansions - whitewashed walls and curved gables around courtyards.
• The house museums - former homes of Lin Zexu, Yan Fu, Bing Xin and others.
• The commercial axis - the main street of shops and restaurants.

When to go

October to April for the mildest weather; Fuzhou summers are hot and humid. Evenings light the quarter and bring local crowds. Weekends and holidays are busy on the main street.

Things to know

The main axis is heavily commercial with chain shops. Several houses charge individually. English interpretation of the historical figures is limited, and their significance is assumed.

Nearby

Fuzhou's West Lake lies northwest; the Min river is south.

Key facts