The Qiao Family Compound, originally the Zaizhong Hall and officially is a
courtyard house
A courtyard house is a type of house—often a large house—where the main part of the building is disposed around a central courtyard. Many houses that have courtyards are not courtyard houses of the type covered by this article. For example, la ...
located in
Qi County,
Jinzhong Prefecture,
Shanxi Province
Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level ...
,
China, approximately northeast of
Pingyao. It is the residential compound of well-known financier
Qiao Zhiyong (乔致庸/喬致庸, 1818—1907), who was the most famous member of the Qiao family. Construction began in 1756 during the reign of the
Qianlong Emperor in the
Qing dynasty and was completed sometime in the 18th century. The estate covers 9000 square meters and has 313 rooms with 4000 square meters within 6 large courtyards and 19 smaller courtyards.
Architects consider it to be one of the finest remaining examples of imposing private residences in northern China. It has been converted into a museum and has many period furnishings.
It is famous for being the chief location in the
Zhang Yimou film ''
Raise the Red Lantern''. A 2006 Chinese television series, ''
Qiao's Grand Courtyard'', was also shot here.
See also
* ''
Siheyuan
A ''siheyuan'' (; IPA: ɹ̩̂.xɤ̌.ɥɛ̂n is a historical type of residence that was commonly found throughout China, most famously in Beijing and rural Shanxi. Throughout Chinese history, the siheyuan composition was the basic pattern used ...
''
*
Shanxi courtyard houses
References
External links
{{Commons category, Qiao Family Compound
Travel China on Qiao's compound
Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Shanxi
Traditional folk houses in China
Houses completed in the 18th century
Jinzhong