Yanfan Caotang, Haining, Zhejiang

Yanfan Caotang was the library of Jiang Guangyu, a book collector in the Qing Dynasty. The Jiang family collected millions of rare and valuable books over three generations, which were stored in Yanfan Caotang. Other Ming Dynasty books, manuscripts, paintings, and ancient inkstones were stored in Sibuqun Zhai, Baoyan Zhai, and other buildings. Yanfan Caotang faces west and has two axes. The south axis has a street-facing house, Yanfan Caotang, Yizhiju, Sikongshi, and Beiyuan Xiashanlou. The north axis has Wuyanzhai, Sibuqun Zhai, Shuangfeng Shishi, and a kitchen. There are additional houses on the south side. The axes are separated by high walls, with a lane running through the middle. Each house is also separated by high firewalls, with glazed ceramic flower windows. The buildings form a courtyard, giving the impression of a deep courtyard with high walls, reflecting the characteristics of ancient libraries. The structure is rigorous and decorated, especially the brick-carved gate in front of Shuangfeng Shishi, which is the most exquisite, with a plaque inscribed with "Qingfen Shou." The Jiang family began collecting books with Jiang Kaiji, the ancestor of the Jiang family, and continued with his sons Jiang Xingwei and Jiang Xinghua, and finally Jiang Guangyu. Jiang Guangyu (1825-1892), courtesy name Yinfang, was a native of Jiaxing, Haining. He was skilled in poetry and calligraphy, and wrote Jingzhai Zazhu, Minghui Bian, and a volume of poetry and novels. The Jiang family collected more than 100,000 rare and valuable books over three generations, which were stored in Yanfan Caotang. During the Taiping Rebellion, Jiang Guangyu moved the ancient books to Xijian Caotang in the Jiang family Bingshe in Nanbei Lake, Haiyan, to avoid the war. Later, he packed the books into more than 50 boxes and 16 cabinets, and transported them up the Yangtze River, moving between Jiang and Han for three years. After the war ended in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the books were transported back to Jiaxing. During the War of Resistance against Japan, the books were moved several times, and finally moved to Shanghai, where they were stored in a bank vault for eight years, and were well preserved. In early 1952, the Jiang family donated all the books to the state, which were stored in the Beijing Library, Shanghai Library, and Zhejiang Library. It is a key cultural relic protection unit in Zhejiang Province.