Historical memory: Dongkou ZongCi in Feudal Society (From 1436 to 1911)
4. The impact of the human environment on the ZongCi
The impact of the cultural environment of Dongkou County on the ZongCi is mainly manifested in five aspects:
First, the clan is the creator of the ZongCi. The characteristics of the surname structure and famous families in Dongkou County have led to the prosperity of the ZongCi.
Second, the emergence of talents has brought prosperity to the ZongCi couplet culture, and generations of skilled craftsmen have developed the art of ZongCi architecture.
56 Third, the foreign culture in the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China had a greater impact on the form and style of the ZongCi archway.
Fourth, the Qi Opera culture has a greater influence on the paintings of the ZongCi and gables.
Fifth, Taoist culture has a significant impact on the carving content of the archway gate of the ZongCi, theater building and other architectural components.
4.1 The composition of surnames and famous families in Dongkou County According to data from the Cultural Relics Bureau, there are currently 300 surnames in Dongkou County, of which 137 surnames migrated before the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The largest populations are the Xiao, the Liu, the Yin, the Wang,the Yang, the Zeng, the Zhang, the Hu, the Fu, the Tang,the Li, the Xu, the Xie and more than 40 surnames.There are some place names with surnames at Dongkou, such as
"the Xiao family", "Sanyang Wang family", "Shanmen Yin family", "Yanshan Fu family",
"Madu Tang family", "Tongmutang Jiang family", "Qutang Yang family", "Mashan Shu family", etc. Many of the clans in the ZongCi of Dongkou County, such as the Xiao, Wang and Zhong, are from famous families. For example, the Xiao family in the Xiao family ZongCi in Fulongzhou, Dongkou Town, Dongkou County, is the descendant of Xiao He, the Prime Minister of Liu Bang, the emperor of the Han Dynasty. Wang's ZongCi in Jiangtan village, Dongkou County, and his ancestor Wang Yiquan, were also chased by Emperor Shizong of the Ming Dynasty as marshal.According to the records of Wugang Prefecture: "Wang Yiquan was a guerrilla in Mianyang in the Ming Dynasty.
He carried a three foot sword to smooth out the disaster and chaos. He was an ancient general. In the year of Jiajing, the general manager of Guizhou, his direct descendant xuansun, revealed that he had made great contributions to the war in Guizhou. Shizong Jiazhi chased the king, took power as the marshal". (Wugang, C. C.
57 C. C., 1997, pp.406) The existing Marshal's Hall in the middle hall of Wang's ZongCi was built by the Wang in 1506 in memory of their ancestor Marshal Wang. It is said that after Zhu Pian, the 18th son of Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang32 of the Ming Dynasty, was granted Wugang, he visited Wang's ZongCi in Jiangtan village, Dongkou county.
He admired Marshal Wang Yiquan's boundless merit and virtue and came from famous families. While praising the geographical style and architectural art of the ZongCi, he happily wrote a huge plaque entitled "The first hope in Hunan" and hung it on the gatehouse after engraving, At the same time, he donated huge gold and purchased 360 mu of land as ancestral property to help Wang's children study.
Zhong's ZongCi in Shuangjiang village, Dongkou County, which is built to worship Marshal Zhong. According to the records of the Zhong family tree, marshal Zhong was originally named Zhong Peiying, with the word Cheng Zhong. He was born in 1349. His ancestral home was TAIE hill, Jiangxi Province, and later transferred to Longmen stream, Chenxi County.Zhong Peiying once protected Emperor Shun of the Yuan Dynasty. In 1367, Emperor Shun of the Yuan Dynasty granted him the seal of recruiting yuan shuai and granted him Jiangyin Hou's festival envoy. After the defeat of Jiujiang in the bloody battle in Jiangxi and the loss of the throne of Emperor Shun of the Yuan Dynasty, Zhong Peiying lived in seclusion in Puxi village, Wugang from 1367 to 1374. In 1374, Emperor Hongwu ordered his imperial envoy to resume his original post as Duke of Jiangyin, and Zhong Peiying refused. Yimao (1375) was scheduled to guard his countryside in the current Shuangjiang village and died in 1402. It is said that during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, the descendants commemorated the ancestors, took dragons to gather in the mountains and built temples. Clan is the creator of the ZongCi, and the characteristics of the surname structure of Dongkou County and the famous clans have led to the prosperity of
32 Founding Emperor of Ming Dynasty
58 ZongCi architecture.
4.2 The couplet culture of the ZongCi
Many clans in Dongkou County are talented people, so the couplet culture of the ZongCi has a wide range of subjects and rich connotations. All the stone-carved door couplets of Huang's ZongCi in Futang, Shanmen Town, Dongkou County, are from the handwritings of the great calligrapher Huang Ziyuan in the late Qing Dynasty.
The ZongCi of the Zeng clan in Gaosha is like a palace of ZongCi and couplet culture and art.Now there are several quotations:
First, "Cool water flows into the west mountain and surrounds the house in harmony; The Tao inherits the East Lu and is loyal and forgiving. "
Second, "Polygonum water migration is easy to find tribes; Wucheng morality will always be a barrier. "
Third, "Open the door of Neo Confucianism and think about progress when you are young; Filial piety and training, our ancestors have their own legacy. "
Fourth, "Zishui is like training, Fengling is like a screen, and all sides are surrounded by Shu Qi; A filial son in the Zhou Dynasty and a loyal minister in the Han Dynasty are worthy of zongfeng for thousands of years."
The above-mentioned "Donglu", "Ancestors", "Filial son in Zhou" and "Wucheng morality" praise Zeng Shen (Zi Yu, Confucius Gaozu, known as Zongsheng in the world) from Wucheng in the south of the state of Lu at the end of the spring and Autumn period. He inherits Confucius' way of "Loyalty and forgiveness" and is respected as a model of "Filial son" in all dynasties. In the couplet, "Xishan", "Zishui",
"Liaoshui" and "Fengling" are used to describe the scenery of high sand; The implication of "tribe", "harmony", "Shuqi" and "Opening the door of Neo Confucianism"
59 originates from the prosperity of Zeng family in Gaosha and the family history of
"Worthy of unique style of a sect for thousands of years".It's a blend of love and scenery. It's catchy and like a spring breeze. Three ancient plaques of "Spring breeze and heavy water", "One family benevolence" and "The same goes to thick" are hung in the temple, which are written by the grandparents and grandchildren of Zeng Guofan, Zeng Jize and Zeng Guangjun. The inscriptions of celebrities such as He Shaoji, Xu Shichang, Tan Yankai and Zhao hengti are all excellent works.
Figure 8 Inscription "Spring breeze and heavy water" by Mr. Zeng Guofan at the Zeng's ZongCi
Source: Han Lei Provide Accessed on: March, 15, 2019
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Figure 9 Inscription "One family benevolence" by Mr. Zeng Guofan's son Zeng Jize at the Zeng's ZongCi
Source: Han Lei Provide Accessed on: November, 9, 2019
Figure 10 Inscription "The same goes to thick" by Mr. Zeng Guofan's grandson Zeng Guangjun at the Zeng's ZongCi
Source: http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_14555c7cf0102ybfr.html Accessed on: November, 19, 2019
61 4.3 The impact of Qi opera culture on the ZongCi
The impact of Qi opera culture on the ZongCi in Dongkou county is reflected in two aspects:
First, Because the drama performed by the ZongCi theater in Dongkou County is dominated by Qi opera, Qi opera culture has a great impact on the functional layout and carving decoration of the theater, which will be deeply analyzed in the form of the ZongCi theater in Dongkou County Chapter V of this paper.
Second, The drama stories of Qi opera often appear on the inside and outside of the ZongCi gable the form of color painting. Such as the drama script "Water Margin" and the drama story of Qi opera.
Figure 11 Stories painted on the walls of Yang's ZongCi Source: Han Lei Provide
Accessed on: March, 25, 2019
62
4.4 The impact of Taoist culture on ZongCis
The influence of Taoist culture on the ZongCi in Dongkou County is reflected in two aspects:
First, Taoist symbolic elements are widely used in the decorative symbols of archway doors and side doors.
Second, Taoist culture has an obvious influence on the ZongCi theater in Dongkou County and occupies a dominant position in its decoration.
Figure 12 Taoist eight Diagrams on roof of Zeng's ZongCi Source: http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_14555c7cf0102ybfr.html
Accessed on: November, 19, 2019
63
Figure 13 Taoist eight Diagrams on roof of Wang's ZongCi Source: Han Lei Provide
Accessed on: March 28, 2021.
5.The basic situation of the existing ZongCi in Dongkou
According to the description of the staff in the cultural department,there were about 300 ZongCi in the heyday of history in Dongkou. They had experienced the baptism of time and social unrest since the Qing dynasty.Many of them had been destroyed or no longer existed. The rest of the 40 ancient ZongCi which were preserved were also badly destroyed. Twenty two of them were rated as cultural relic protection units at all levels.According to the Bureau of Cultural Relics, dozens of ZongCi were built from 1506 to 1910, which went through different historical periods. The time span was nearly 500 years. In the data of all levels of cultural relics
64 protection units provided by the Bureau of Cultural Relics in Dongkou, eleven ZongCi are successfully declared as the seventh batch of national key cultural relic protection units, which are in Shijiang,Dongkou, Gaosha,Shanmen and Zhushi and so on.Eleven national cultural relics protection units that possess The Jintang Yang's ZongCi, The Tanjiang Wang's ZongCi, The Qutang Yang's ZongCi, The Shuangjiang Zhong's ZongCi, The Shitian Tan's ZongCi, The Futang Huang's ZongCi, The Zhantian Liao's ZongCi, The Shuangxi Yin's ZongCi, The Yantang Pan's ZongCi, The Dongkou Xiao's ZongCi and The Gaosha Zeng's ZongCi are in Dongkou. It is ranked the top of all the towns.It is investigated that the eleven cultural relic protection units of ZongCi in Dongkou have their own history and feature.(Dai, Q. L., 2019, pp.12)
Figure 14 The Jintang Yang's ZongCi
Source: https://www.cphoto.com.cn/dz/redirect.php?tid=46196&goto=lastpost Accessed on: October 25, 2012.
The Yang's ZongCi in Jintang , which was used to make a film called The Family of Fenmo, was built in 1910. It covers an area of 1,380 square meters.It is surrounded
65 by open fields in the east,west and north and there is a small hill in the south.National Highway 320, which is only 300 meters from it, passes The Yang's ZongCi .It is a quadrangle courtyard with a brick and wood structure.It is the best preserved ZongCi in Jintang and it has been repaired eight times in history.According to the description of the keeper of The Wang's, many cultural relics in ZongCi have been lost.A pair of stone monkeys under the large wooden post has been stolen.Although it has been repaired eight times, the whole building gives us an impression that it will collapse at any time.While it is in ruins,there are still many fine stone carvings and wood carvings which are vivid and lifelike.
Figure 15 The Tanjiang Wang's ZongCi Source: Han Lei Provide
Accessed on: March 28, 2021.
The Wang's ZongCi in Jiangtan is located by the bank of the Huangni River.It is known as the first hope in Hunan..It was built by the later generations of The Wang's in the memory their ancestor, the famous marshal,Yiquan,Wang in 1506.The Wang's
66 ZongCi covers a total area of 2,226 square meters. It is a quadrangle courtyard which composes of three main rooms and two side rooms,which has a history of more than five hundred years.It is one of the largest ZongCi in existence in Shaoyang.At present, there is evidence to prove that it is also one of the oldest ZongCi in Hunan Province.From the renovation of the theater building in 2011 to the restoration of The Wang's ZongCi , we have adhered to the principle of repairing the old as the old and retained the architectural style since Ming Dynasty.It still has exquisite and dignified structure.It is still simple with strong local characteristics.
Figure 16The Qutang Yang's ZongCi
Source: http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_59e5d1350101811j.html Accessed on: January 19, 2013.
67
Figure 17 The Shuangjiang Zhong's ZongCi Source:
http://hngcz.txhn.net/gczgmj_tpjj/tpjj_jzxjt/201312/t20131218_376385.htm Accessed on: Unknown
The Zhong's ZongCi in Shuangjiang was built in Ming Wanli years.It was built by the clansmen of The Zhong's in memory of their progenitor Marshal Zhong. It covers an area of 1,856 square meters.The terrain layout is low in the front and high in the back.A gallery is on the back of the gate,but there is not an opera stage. There is an attic which is as large as the ancient opera stage in design and construction, with a bell and drum tower on both side, between the fourth bedroom and the central scroll.It is a quadrangle courtyard with a brick and wood structure. The government granted 7,258,400 yuan in order to restore and start the conservation and renovation work of the Zhong's ZongCi.The relievos, paintings and stone carvings that were damaged in The Zhong's ZongCi have been restored.The dilapidated buildings have been restored .This basically restores the imitation of the western architectural style.
68
Figure 18 The Shitian Tan's ZongCi Source: http://www.100citang.cn/citang/1551
Accessed on: Unknown
The Tan's ZongCi is located on the east side of Shitian village in Shijiang Toown,which was built in 1703.It covers an area of 2,642 square meters.The plane of the stylobate is square.Cascade layout is from top to bottom.It faces south and it is a quadrangle courtyard with brick and wood structure.You can see a decorated archway,a stage,an inner a garden,a central hall,a dooryard,bedrooms with side rooms and nearby building on both side successively on the central axis.The layout of ZongCi is integrated with the natural environment. From 1923 to 1938, they gradually restored the decorated archway,the stage,the side rooms and the central hall.Currently,it is in the stage of restoring.
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Figure 19 The Futang Huang's ZongCi
Source: https://www.sohu.com/a/362844010_100123512 Accessed on: December 26, 2019.
Figure 20 The Zhantian Liao's ZongCi
Source: https://www.sohu.com/a/362844010_100123512 Accessed on: December 26, 2019.
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Figure 21 The Shuangxi Yin's ZongCi
Source: http://photo.rednet.cn/space.php?uid=61217&do=blog&id=22260 Accessed on: April 13, 2012.
Figure 22 The Yantang Pan's ZongCi
Source: https://www.sohu.com/a/362844010_100123512 Accessed on: December 26, 2019.
71
Figure 23 The Dongkou Xiao's ZongCi
Source: https://www.sohu.com/a/362844010_100123512 Accessed on: December 26, 2019.
Figure 24 The Gaosha Zeng's ZongCi
Source: http://www.hues.com.cn/gujianzhu/smct/show/?N_ID=2226 Accessed on: Unknown
72 5.1 Spatial layout of ZongCi culture
There is The Liu's ZongCi besides eleven state-level cultural relics protection units in Shijiang.Because of the factors of geographical environment, economic development,abundant natural resources,and history, it has formed unique cultural spatial pattern of the culture of ZongCi in Tongjiang.Many of them were built in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.At that time, western thoughts were introduced to China, so the architectural style in the Ming and Qing Dynasties mainly imitated that of western countries.According to the description of the responsible person of The Zhong's ZongCi, this is mainly because the clansmen who studied abroad or made a living abroad integrated western architectural style into the construction of ZongCi,using stone carving,wood carving,clay sculpture,paining and other forms.They are not limited to one type have shown the ingenuity of craftsmen in ancient times.The architectural style is general the traditional axis symmetry and develops in depth.When you go into The Zhong's ZongCi, first you can see the gate, the stage, the main hall and the ancestral hall with side rooms,the bell and drum tower and subsidiary buildings on both sides.This is a courtyard layout around the central axis and it is a symmetrical courtyard space structure. It is also a quadrangle courtyard with brick and wood structure.It was built on the mountain foot,facing the south.There is a river or flat ground in front of it . You can enjoy wide vision and beautiful scenery.The Liu's ZongCi, The Wang's ZongCi, The Tan's ZongCi,The Yang's ZongCi and The Zhong's ZongCi are on both sides of the roads.The overall layout is from the east to the west.
5.2 The popularization process of ZongCi
From the Song and Yuan Dynasties to the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, the
73 civilian ZongCi system established by Zhudi33 did not become a national law. The national etiquette, “Mingjili34" from 1368-1398 established the family temple system of the officials. The ordinary people could only do some sacrificial activities in their bedrooms, but about the specific design of the official family temples,it basically imitated the system of ZongCi from Jiali.It was the first time that it had made Jiali enter the national code system.Therefore, the so-called ritual system of ancestor worship in the Ming Dynasty actually was the official tendency of Jiali and that was the State institutionalization. From this point of view, the Ming Dynasty was a time of spreading Judi's Jiali. In other words, Jiali was widely spread in the Ming Dynasty because the official etiquette played an important role. (Chang, J., 2010, pp.66) The imperial edict clearly expanded the algebra of ancestor worship from the second generation to the third generation in 1384, but the ordinary people were not allowed to establish ZongCi.In fact,the common people had already exceeded the limit of the national etiquette system with ancestor worship in an independent ZongCi outside the home.Influenced by Zhuzi's Jiali, ancestor worship extended to four generation. The government acquiesced in the civil transgression.In order to establish his father, who was only a local vassal,as the first emperor, Emperor Jiajing did not hesitate to have a fierce confrontation with the imperial courtiers. The system of etiquette had been reformed greatly. In general, the restrictions on the application of high-level etiquette system were relaxed. In 1536, the emperor issued an edict to allow Zonci to offer sacrifices to the ancestors of the clan. In the traditional ritual system, the ancestor tablets could only be sacrificed in the temple of the emperor.
It could be seen that in the past the saxred ancestral temple system had changed from the royal aristocracy to the folk clan. Ancestral ZongCi were becoming more
33 The third emperor of the Ming Dynasty
34 Books on the etiquette system of the Ming Dynasty