Huizhou-style Architecture

 

 

The appearance process of Huizhou-style architecture is largely influenced by the unique historical and geographical environment as well as of Huizhou. Originally it was the collective living site, and their house style was the special buildings that suiting for the mountainous life. As the settlement of the people from central China, the structure and number of population were changed but also brought the advanced culture of central China, which directly shows in the architectural styles. In the earlier time, the style of living room above the ground floor was very typical and the living room was specially large and acted as the daily-action place.

Because the moist mountainous environment and for defending the impact from the miasma, such kind of building style was well preserved. In the middle time of Ming Dynasty, Huizhou businessmen rose up. These businessmen brought a large number of capitals and came back, most of the money they invested into the housing building. They built the family memorial temple, built the gardens, erected Paifang, built the bridges and built roads and pavilions, which brought a great change in look of local architecture. Due to the traditional thought that people always turned to loving the Confucian education after they became rich, high-educated businessmen put their personal understanding on layout, structure, inner decoration of houses into the house building, which greatly promoted the formation of such kind of unique architectural system.