[2024 Suzhou Attraction] Travel Guide for Luxiang Ancient Village (Updated Sep)

The first ancient village in Taihu Lake~~Luxiang Ancient Village.

Luxiang Ancient Village is located on the side of Taihu Lake in the back mountain of Suzhou. It is an ancient village with a long history and profound cultural heritage. There are many residential buildings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, many archways, unique styles, and high artistic value. The ancient village is surrounded by mountains and rivers, with beautiful natural scenery, and is a good place for tourism and vacation. As the hometown of Wang Ao, the prime minister during the Zhengde period of the Ming Dynasty, Wang Ao once won the first place in the imperial examination, the first place in the palace examination, and the third place in the palace examination. Luxiang Ancient Village is known as the "first ancient village in Taihu Lake". It has produced many scholars and scholars, and every brick and tile is soaked in the vicissitudes of history. In addition, there are abundant products and folk culture in the ancient village, allowing tourists to feel the local customs while enjoying the beautiful scenery.

Lu Lane Ancient Village, the first ancient village of Taihu Lake

Located more than forty kilometers away from Suzhou City on the eastern shore of Taihu Lake, there is an ancient village called 'Lu Lane Ancient Village.' Lu Lane Ancient Village faces the vast Taihu Lake in front, backs against Moli Peak, with Hangu Mountain to the east and Jianhu Island to the west, facing the western hills of Taihu Lake across the lake. The unique and superior natural environment makes Lu Lane Ancient Village picturesque and unparalleled. Lu Lane Ancient Village is the hometown of Prime Minister Wang Ao during the Zhengde period of the Ming Dynasty. 'Prime Minister' was just a common term in ancient times, not a specific official title; titles like Shangshu Ling and Grand Secretary of the Cabinet could all be referred to as Prime Minister. It is not wrong to call Wang Ao a Prime Minister because he served in the court for more than thirty years, with official titles such as Minister of Revenue and Grand Secretary of the Wuying Hall, equivalent to 'Prime Minister.' In the feudal dynasties, the officialdom was full of intrigue and hidden dangers, and a slight mistake could lead to fatal consequences. Wang Ao understood this deeply. When his official career was flourishing, he chose to retire and return to his hometown, which was a wise decision. Wang Ao was talented and learned, skilled in literature, calligraphy, and collecting books. His student Tang Yin praised him as 'the best writer in the country, the unparalleled Prime Minister in the mountains.' There are two popular explanations for the name 'Lu Lane Ancient Village': one is that Wang Ao's mother had the surname Lu, hence the village was named 'Lu Lane'; the other is that there are six lanes in the village leading directly to the shore of Taihu Lake, and the character 'Lu' is a homophone for the number six, hence the name 'Lu Lane.' Walking into Lu Lane Ancient Village, it is as quiet as an uninhabited place. Occasionally, a few sounds of roosters crowing and dogs barking break the silence. In the village, there are many tall horsehead walls and deep courtyards with black tiles and white walls. In the old street at the center of the village, three archways named 'Jieyuan,' 'Huiyuan,' and 'Tanhua' stand tall not far from each other, symbolizing Wang Ao's continuous success in the imperial examinations and his fame in his hometown. Today, there are still five ancient ancestral halls scattered in the ancient village, such as Huihe Hall, Huaigu Hall, and Baojian Hall, full of ancient charm and pleasing to the eye. Lu Lane Ancient Village originated in the Southern Song Dynasty, but the exact year is unknown. It is reported that Lu Lane Ancient Village historically had more than seventy large-scale Ming and Qing dynasty buildings, and more than ten of them are still intact. Data shows that Lu Lane Ancient Village is currently the best-preserved ancient village in Jiangnan with the highest quality and quantity of ancient buildings. Given the profound cultural and historical heritage and the rich ancient architectural features of Lu Lane Ancient Village, it has been awarded the title of one of the first national historical and cultural villages by authoritative national departments and is known as 'the first ancient village of Taihu Lake.'

If you come to Dongshan, you must visit Luxiang Ancient Village

After coming to Suzhou Dongshan with my bestie on the weekend to eat loquats and Taihu boat cuisine, I was amazed by Luxiang Ancient Village 🥳. Luxiang Ancient Village is located in Suzhou Dongshan, backed by the Moling Green Mountains, facing the vast Taihu Lake. It is said that the village got its name from the six alleys within it, hence the name Luxiang 🎉 Time seems to slow down here, with the strong scent of life being the dense Baiyun Yufang cakes, the scattered ancient buildings, and the plaques made of blue bricks 🧱 and red tiles, ⛩ with inscriptions of 'Zhuangyuan', 'Huiyuan', 'Tanhua', 'Bangyan'. Many ancient top scholars came from this village, truly making it a place of outstanding people and a spiritually endowed land. Visitors are also captivated by the spirit of Prime Minister Wang Ao 👍 ➡️ A senior official through three reigns of the Ming Dynasty - Xianzong, Xiaozong, and Wuzong - locals called him the Prime Minister. He is the pride of Luxiang. In the tenth year of the Ming Chenghua period (1474), he was first in the imperial examinations, the following year he was first in the metropolitan examinations, and the next year, he was third in the palace examinations, earning the title 'Tanhua'. The Jieyuanfang 🥇, Huiyuanfang 🥈, and Tanhua • Grand Scholar Fang 🥉 were built by the government for Wang Ao 🪨 The ancient village is more like an ancient house museum 🕋 with relics everywhere. Especially the remnants of the blue stone archways of Tanhua, Huiyuan, and Jieyuan, which take visitors back to ancient times～ Snacks, the streets 🈶️ have a faint scent of cakes, and when you come here, you can also try the distinctive Baiyun Yufang cakes, loquat honey 🍯 wine, etc. If you don't know where to go on the weekend, then make a date with your good friends 😌 to come and eat loquats and 🚢 Taihu boat cuisine, 📍 check in at Luxiang Ancient Village in Suzhou ✔️ 🚗 Luxiang Ancient Village has a parking lot 🅿️, best for self-driving. 🎯 It is 129m from Molifeng Huan Shan Road in Wuzhong District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province to Dongshan Luxiang Bridge (bus station), about a 2-minute walk 🍴 Have an authentic Taihu boat cuisine meal at the 28 Li Taihu Boat Cuisine (Jixiang Road store), 👀 watch a Kunqu opera performance, and enjoy the twelve flavors of Taihu while dining on a four-story wooden boat.

Dongshan Luxiang Ancient Village in Suzhou

Luxiang Ancient Village is located in the middle of Taihu Lake to the southwest of Suzhou, backed by mountains and facing the lake, with beautiful scenery. It is the ancient village with the most and the most complete preservation of Ming and Qing architectural heritage in the Suzhou area and even in Jiangsu Province. "Idyllic scholarship, pursuing dreams in Luxiang," historically, this place has produced top scholars, second-place scholars, and numerous imperial examination graduates and scholars, as well as modern academicians, earning the reputation of "the village of imperial examinations".

"Zhonglan Yuyu" Chess and Music Fairy House

The Cuhe Hall of the Ye family in Dongshan Luxiang was built during the Qing Dynasty. The Cuhe Hall has collapsed, and the only existing open one is the side hall of the Cuhe Hall, also known as the Chess and Music Fairy House. It is a place for the master to burn incense and play the qin in his spare time. Due to the peculiar architectural structure of the building, it can produce the effect of the sound of the qin around the beam. The brick-carved gate of the side hall is the most complete and exquisitely carved gate preserved in Luxiang. Its content is carved with a full set of Three Kingdoms stories, and the carvings are all amazing. 1⃣️The gate is divided into three layers of carvings. The lower part was somewhat damaged during the Cultural Revolution. The upper part is carved with some classic scenes from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms: the Empty City Plan, the Three Heroes Fight Lv Bu, and the Thousand Miles of Single Riding. The carving uses the technique of through-carving, and the shapes of people and horses are full and three-dimensional. 2⃣️The gate plaque reads "Zhonglan Yuyu", expressing the gentlemanly taste of the Ye family's love for orchids and collection of beautiful jade. The word "jade" has an extra point, expressing the Ye family's hope that their collection of jade will be a little more and better than others. The plaque is signed "Langting Shen Zhaolin", Shen Zhaolin (1801-1862), styled Langting, from Hangzhou, Zhejiang. He was a scholar in the 16th year of Daoguang (1836), and served as the Left Du Yushi. He was the Minister of the Military Machinery for ten years. In the first year of Tongzhi (1862), he was appointed as the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu. Shen Zhaolin's calligraphy was very famous in the Qing Dynasty, and his inscription could fall into the Ye family, which shows that the status of the Ye family at that time was extraordinary. 3⃣️The culture of the brick-carved gate of the Cuhe Hall, the wise craftsman only carved the lifelike characters in the Empty City Plan of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms on the small brick gate, which really admires the profound cultural heritage of Dongshan. Address: Enter in the middle of the small alley behind Wang Ao's old house, see picture 2 for the entrance.

The secluded mansion 'Cuihe Hall' in Dongshan Luxiang

Cuihe Hall was built by the Ye family during the Qing Dynasty. Cuihe Hall has collapsed, but there are still three brick-carved gate towers in the ruins, and the plaques of the two entrances behind are: 'Tolerance is greatness' and 'Prosperity for the future'. The brick carvings of the gate tower are still very exquisite. After visiting the brick-carved gate tower of Qilexianguan in 98, the main house was in a mess. Figures 3-7. But the three brick-carved gate towers are very exquisite, some are damaged, but I remember the second one is 'Tolerance is greatness', and all the lower beams on the front are carp tumbling in the water. Now the old house has been repaired and the gate tower is well protected, which is quite reassuring. Figure 15 is the same door as Qilexianguan. There is also a small gate tower called 'Yimou Yanji', which is very simple, with a pair of phoenix stone carvings underneath, which is very exquisite. The words are written by Gu Xianchang. The last picture is the back door, look at these large bluestone bars, the bandits of Taihu Lake probably couldn't attack back then. Address: Behind the former residence of Wang Ao in Luxiang.

Taihu's first ancient village

Paradise above, Suzhou below, refers to Suzhou and Hangzhou. The Wuzhong District of Suzhou was established as a county system as early as the Qin Dynasty, with a history of more than 2000 years. On this ancient land, 40 kilometers away from Suzhou, there is a quiet and low-key ancient village from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, named Luxiang Ancient Village, located in Dongshan Town, on the east bank of Taihu Lake, enjoying the reputation of 'Taihu's first ancient village'. Luxiang Ancient Village was first built in the Southern Song Dynasty, the specific era is unknown, with a history of a thousand years. It is said that during the Southern Song Dynasty, a group of generals invaded from Taiyuan to here, among which generals with surnames such as Wang and Ye settled here, built many houses, and six surnames formed six ancient lanes, covering an area of tens of thousands of square meters. Since the establishment of Luxiang Ancient Village, it has been a land of outstanding people and spirit. In history, it has produced 1 top scholar, 1 third place scholar, 11 imperial scholars, 46 successful candidates in the imperial examination, and is the hometown of Ye Mengde, a famous minister of the Southern Song Dynasty, Wang Ao, a prime minister of the Ming Dynasty, and Wang Shichen, a top scholar of the Qing Dynasty. Today, 4 of the academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences come from Luxiang Village. The architecture in Luxiang Village is currently the highest quality, most numerous, and well-preserved ancient village in the Ming and Qing Dynasties in the Jiangnan region. Today, there are more than 20 well-preserved Ming Dynasty buildings in the village, and Qing Dynasty buildings are everywhere. The most famous of these ancient buildings are Baojian Hall and Huihe Hall. Luxiang is surrounded by mountains and water, with large plantations of orange trees and tea trees in the mountains. The Biluochun tea produced in Luxiang is fragrant and refreshing, and the local white sand loquat is now in the harvest season, as well as red oranges, bayberries, pomegranates and other fruits, Taihu's three whites, shrimp and crab are well-known, and the white jade square cakes and salty dumplings on the street are never boring. A bite of the square cake made of glutinous rice flour, the clear taste of glutinous rice mixed with the strong handmade bean paste, is soft, glutinous, crispy and fragrant. The village streets are built with green brick stones in a herringbone pattern, and the main street is paved with strip stones. Among them, Zishi Street is the central street of Luxiang, with a road surface made of purple stone slabs, first built in the middle of the Ming Dynasty, running north-south. There are 3 archways on Zishi Street, which were built when Wang Ao was the top scholar, the second place scholar, and the third place scholar. Centered on Zishi Street, streets and lanes extend in six directions, with dozens of residential buildings distributed on both sides of the six streets and lanes. If you like Ming and Qing architecture, you will definitely not miss the many ancient buildings in the village. If you like eating, drinking, and playing, it is the season for picking bayberries and loquats, and you must not miss it.

Luxiang Ancient Village is the oldest and best preserved ancient village in the Jiangnan architectural group. It is the hometown of the prime minister of the Ming Dynasty. It is known as the Taihu First Ancient Village and is located in the middle of the East Mountain.

#11#Where is the best place in Suzhou, Luxiang Ancient Village is located on the side of Suzhou Dongshan Taihu Lake. It is the oldest village with the highest quality, the largest quantity and the best preservation in the Jiangnan construction community. Luxiang Ancient Village is the hometown of the prime minister of the Ming Dynasty in the Ming Dynasty. It is the first batch of historical and cultural villages in the country and is known as the first ancient village of Taihu Lake. Into the Luxiang ancient village, let more people feel the beauty of Wuzhong. With a group of friends on the same trip, playing super happy. The more meaning of travel is to share, talk about the story in your eyes, the story in my eyes, in this ancient alley, in the market where people come and go, to capture the small details of life. Use the purest eyes. #,###Where is the most fun in Suzhou, Luxiang Ancient Village is located in Suzhou Dongshan Taihu Lake. It is the oldest village with the highest quality, the largest quantity and the best preservation in the Jiangnan construction community. Luxiang Ancient Village is the hometown of the prime minister of the Ming Dynasty in the Ming Dynasty. It is the first batch of historical and cultural villages in the country and is known as the first ancient village of Taihu Lake. Into the Luxiang ancient village, let more people feel the beauty of Wuzhong. With a group of friends on the same trip, playing super happy. The more meaning of travel is to share, talk about the story in your eyes, the story in my eyes, in this ancient alley, in the market where people come and go, to capture the small details of life. Use the purest eyes. #,#

#11# The city of Suzhou is big, but not one family. Since the Ming Dynasty, the Taizi Taifu, the Wenyuange University, Wang Xi, the scholarly style, the business, the business, so the official is outside, there are many business people. In the heyday, there are 72 large-scale halls in the village of Luxiang. Although it has undergone a long history and changes in history, there are still more than 20 buildings in the Ming and Qing Dynasties in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The high and complete preservation is the only one in the south of the Yangtze River. Here is the home of Wang Shuo University, and the hall dedicated to the sedan chair is still very stylish. ###11# The city of Suzhou is big, but not one family. Since the Ming Dynasty, the Taizi Taifu, the Wenyuange University, Wang Xi, the scholarly style, the business, the business, so the official is outside, there are many business people. In the heyday, there are 72 large-scale halls in the village of Luxiang. Although it has undergone a long history and changes in history, there are still more than 20 buildings in the Ming and Qing Dynasties in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The high and complete preservation is the only one in the south of the Yangtze River. Here is the home of Wang Shuo University, and the hall dedicated to the sedan chair is still very stylish. ##

#11# The Southern Song Dynasty has Luxiang Ancient Village, which is said in history. Song family Nandu, through Taihu Lake, see Dongshan Xiongyu Lake, quiet and quiet, many warriors will settle their homes here, built a village with six lanes, hence the name Luxiang. One shows that the university's Lu Xiangren Wang Hao's great-grandfather Wang Yanxiang was Lu Zijing's family after the niece and Yan Xiang's business development, named Lu Wangcun and then Lu Xiangcun. The main body is still the architectural style of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The aroma of the ointment will drift for a long time. Diffuse the ancient village. ### Where to go to play in November #, said in history. Song family Nandu, through Taihu Lake, see Dongshan Xiongyu Lake, quiet and quiet, many warriors will settle their homes here, built a village with six lanes, hence the name Luxiang. One shows that the university's Lu Xiangren Wang Hao's great-grandfather Wang Yanxiang was Lu Zijing's family after the niece and Yan Xiang's business development, named Lu Wangcun and then Lu Xiangcun. The main body is still the architectural style of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The aroma of the ointment will drift for a long time. Diffuse the ancient village. ##