IV. Vernacular Dwellings of the Ming and Qing Periods

　　The Scale of vernacular dwellings of the Ming Dynasty exceeded that of their predecessors by far. Owing to the prevalence of the patriarchal clan system, large families were very common. There were indeed many families which had members of three or four generations living together and sharing the property. Family conflicts were dealt with in the clan hall. Some vernacular dwellings of the Ming Dynasty still exist, some on a very large scale indeed. The development of brick-making meant that brick-built buildings greatly increased, and although there were still many with a wooden structure, the fact that wooden pillar were encased by brick wall led to the outward appearance of dwellings changing; beautiful nonetheless, in a different way from the earlier wooden buildings. The strict hierarchical system for dwellings continued in the Ming Dynasty, but as mentioned above, many powerful officials, rich merchants and landlords defied the law and had residences built on a grand scale, descriptions of which can be found in literature. These would, for instance, possess over one thousand rooms and have beautiful gardens extending over several li. One of the largest extant house complexes is that which belonged to the Dongyang Lu family, who were high officials serving the Ming court. The mansion, with its elaborate arrangement of commemorative gateways (parlous) grew over several generations to become a residence of breathtaking size and luxury. It was also during the Ming period that the earliest storeyed house of the unit type emerged. Qiyunlou in the village of Shangping, Shajian Township in the county of Hua'an, Fujian Province, a storeyed building oval in shape was built in the 18th year of the reign of Wanli (1590 AD) of the Ming Dynasty, and the round building with outer walling of bond granite, Shengpinglou, was built in the 29th year of the reign of Wanli (1601 AD). These two buildings are both tulou of large dimension with a courtyard at the center and the ring-formed building on the perimeter divided into one or two dozen units. Each living unit has its own kitchen, small courtyard, hall, bedroom and sitting room, forming separate living spaces. According to the family tree of the clan, the history of Qiyunlou may be traced back to the fourth year of the reign of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1371 AD). In other words, in China, unit type storeyed buildings emerged as early as over 600 years ago.

　　Many types of Ming Dynasty dwellings are extant. These are: the yaodong (cave dwelling), the siheyuan in the northern regions, the closed court in the southern regions, the tulou in Fujian, the southern pile-supported storeyed dwelling and the yikeyin-type dwelling in Yunnan, etc. The main features of the vernacular dwellings of the Ming Dynasty, during which great advancements were made, were an emphasis on naturalness and on providing a frame-work conducive to greater personal spiritual freedom. Local versions of the basic forms appeared in various places. Within the scope permitted by the system at that time, vernacular dwellings allowed aesthetic interests and individual requirements for freer development, more or less breaking with the ethical and moral limitations of the time.

　　The technique of ramming earth, colored glaze, carpentry, the brick arch were all greatly developed in the Qing Dynasty, but vernacular dwellings changed little as far as the architecture was concerned. In the period from the middle-Ming to the Opium War, democracy was in its embryonic stage. Although it was at first limited to a few places in the southeast, it was to have far-reaching consequences, in particular those of an ideological nature, for the whole of Chinese society. Social life was also to undergo significant change. A history of vernacular dwellings shows that each era brought about change, sometimes decisive, sometimes less so. The Song, Jin and Yuan Dynasties saw much experimentation in wooden frames and modeling. Yueliang (a crescent-shaped beam, a slightly arched beam in the beam of a round-ridged roof), duanqifa (the technology of interrupted brick-laying), the asymmetrical joint of roof trusses, 工and 王-shaped layouts, etc. with through galleries had all contributed towards taking the art of building further. However, it was during the Ming and Qing Dynasties that the large wooden structure of vernacular dwellings was simplified and gradually fell into a pattern. The gently flowing lines of many of the roofs in Central China disappeared, to be replaced by a relatively serious and simple style. Fashionable in the Kangxi and Yongzheng period especially was the ornamentation inside vernacular dwellings. The efang (architrave) and the zhuchu (column plinth) were all richly carved. Delicately carved and intricately patterned were the shanhua (pediment) on the shanqiang (gables) of the yingshanding (flush gable roof, two-sloped roof flush with the gables or slightly lower). It was then as well that ground brick walls were often installed at both ends of the corridor running under the eaves. In vernacular dwellings in the south, emphasis was even laid on giving the fire sealing gables visual variety, adding a certain brilliance to the whole. The chuihuamen (a pendant floral gate, the second gate of an old - style mansion with a vaulted top and carved, painted ornamentation) of the siheyuan in the north were heavily painted and possessed subtle elegance. In addition to the interior embellishment of vernacular dwellings, furniture in the Qing Dynasty was perfectly crafted and possessed an artistic quality that in the strength and homogeneity of its style was highly impressive.

　　The artistic features of vernacular dwellings in the Qing Dynasty were vigorous in form and of fine craftsmanship. Doors and windows and the efang, zhuchu and shanhua were all heavily ornamented. Inspire of the prevailing taste for the heavily decorated, sometimes inevitably lead to a certain emptiness and meaninglessness, the standard of architecture exceeded that of previous periods by far. There are many examples of Qing Dynasty architecture still extant, some of them in good condition.

　　The furniture of both the Ming and Qing Dynasties was displayed above all a good choice of material, not only giving full play to the actual properties of the material, but also allowing its color and texture to be utilized at best and thus achieving unity of form and texture. The method used in the frame type structure conformed with the principles of mechanics, and at the same time, gave the piece a graceful, three-dimensional profile. It was often only the subsidiary parts that were carved, resulting in a decorative effect without weakening the stability. Altogether, the furniture impressed by its stability, harmonious proportions, clear lines, its dignity and at the same time its liveliness. From the pre-Qin period to the beginning of this century, it was the wooden frame structure that provided the structural basis for the main body of the building. Although through the ages different styles had appeared in different versions depending on the part of the country, in the main there had been no radical break-through as regards the architecture. In this, Chinese vernacular dwellings differed from those of the west, and played an important part in Chinese traditional culture and its philosophy. The richness and multifamily of Chinese vernacular dwellings is a crystallization of the times, which is extremely precious, and the values derived from studying and understanding this priceless heritage cannot be overestimated.

　　出版：Springer Wien New York

　　ISBN-3-211-83008-1

　　2000年