The General Post Office Building () is the head post office of

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. Built in 1924, the four-story building is located at 395 Tiandong Road, at the north end of the Sichuan Road Bridge, on the banks of the

Suzhou Creek Suzhou Creek (or Soochow Creek), also called the Wusong (Woosung) River, is a river that passes through the Shanghai city center. It is named after the neighboring city of Suzhou (Soochow), Jiangsu, the predominant settlement in this area prior ...

History

In the early years of the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

(ROC), Shanghai was the center of China's postal network. In 1914, China joined the

Universal Postal Union The Universal Postal Union (UPU, ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that coordinates postal policies among member nations and facilitates a uniform worldwide postal system. It has 192 member states and is headquartered in Be ...

, and Shanghai was designated as the exchange for international mail. By the early 1920s, the previous premises of the postal administration was no longer adequate, and land was acquired on the north bank of

for the construction of a new headquarters building. The building was situated within the

Shanghai International Settlement The Shanghai International Settlement () originated from the 1863 merger of the British Concession (Shanghai), British and American Concession (Shanghai), American list of former foreign enclaves in China, enclaves in Shanghai, in which Brit ...

, midway between the central business district and the

Shanghai North Railway Station Shanghai North railway station (), located on East Tianmu Road, was the main railway station of Shanghai during most of the 20th century. It was closed in 1987 and a replica of the original 1909 building, erected on the same site, is now the Shan ...

. Built from 1922 to 1924 and designed by Stewardson & Spence,Warr, Anne: ''Shanghai Architecture'', The Watermark Press, 2007, the building is in

Classical style Classical architecture typically refers to architecture consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or more specifically, from ''De architectura'' (c. 10 AD) by the Roman architect Vitruvius. Va ...

. Its two main facades use three-story high

grand order Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), ...

Corinthian column The Corinthian order (, ''Korinthiakós rythmós''; ) is the last developed and most ornate of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order, which was the earliest, ...

s. The main door is on the corner, and is topped by a

Baroque style The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from the early 17th century until the 1750s. It followed Renaissance art and Mannerism and preceded the Rococo (i ...

clock tower. The sides of the clocktower are decorated with three statuary groups. The central group features

Hermes Hermes (; ) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology considered the herald of the gods. He is also widely considered the protector of human heralds, travelers, thieves, merchants, and orators. He is able to move quic ...

, flanked by

Eros Eros (, ; ) is the Greek god of love and sex. The Romans referred to him as Cupid or Amor. In the earliest account, he is a primordial god, while in later accounts he is the child of Aphrodite. He is usually presented as a handsome young ma ...

and

Aphrodite Aphrodite (, ) is an Greek mythology, ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, procreation, and as her syncretism, syncretised Roman counterpart , desire, Sexual intercourse, sex, fertility, prosperity, and ...

, the god and goddess of love. On the second level is the 1200 square meter main trading hall, which was known as the "First Hall of the Far East". The foundations of the building used an ingenious system of tanks, which was filled and drained by water from neighbouring Suzhou Creek as water levels rose and fell. This ensured that the building remained stable and level despite changes in water levels. After the

Chinese civil war The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led Nationalist government, government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Armed conflict continued intermitt ...

the building continued to house the headquarters of Shanghai's postal administration. From 2003, parts of the building, including the courtyard, was converted into Shanghai Postal Museum. Admission to the museum is free. Postal administration functions had moved out, but the retail post office operation continue from the trading hall (though that is now only a fraction of its original size). It is protected as a National Artefact Preservation Unit.

References

External links

High resolution architectural photographs of historical buildings in Shanghai
{{coord, 31, 14, 47.05, N, 121, 28, 48.06, E, region:CN-31_type:landmark, display=title, name=General Post Office Building Buildings and structures in Shanghai Museums in Shanghai Post office buildings in China

Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Shanghai Postal history of China 1924 establishments in Shanghai Museums established in 2003

History

See also

References

External links