Jinggang Ancient Town in Changsha, Hunan | Eight Streets, Four Alleys, Seven Piers, Hongtaifang, Shadow Puppet Museum, Bayuantang

Jinggang Ancient Town is located in the northwest of Wangcheng District, Changsha City, situated on the west bank of the Xiang River, 30 kilometers away from Changsha City. It has been a port for loading and unloading goods of merchant ships since ancient times, and was once a prosperous commercial port for the distribution of materials in Sanxiang, known as 'Little Hankou'. There is a saying that 'when a ship arrives at Jinggang port, it will not leave even with the wind', which shows its prosperity. At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, Li Jing was ordered by Emperor Gaozu of Tang to lead the army to pacify the south of the Yangtze River and garrison around the Xiang River in Changsha. In the late Qing Dynasty, Zeng Guofan led the Xiang Army to fight against the Taiping Army here, but was defeated and forced to jump into the river twice, but was rescued by his subordinates. The Battle of Jinggang was a defeat but also a turning point in his life. In the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China, there were more than 50 grain shops, more than 20 grain warehouses and rice shops, and a batch of other industries. In the middle of the Republic of China, it stood alongside big towns such as Jinshi, Hankou, Xiangtan, and Yiyang, and was a major center of commercial trade in the Changsha area at that time, and was one of the four major rice markets in Hunan. The ancient town of Jinggang now preserves the pattern of 'Eight Streets, Four Alleys, Seven Piers', and the late Qing Dynasty brick and wood structures such as 'Hongtaifang' and 'Yuyingtang' are well preserved. The religious site 'has a thousand people in the morning and ten thousand lamps at night', and the 'Yangsi Tower', 'Guanyin Temple', 'Ziyun Palace' and other places are well-known far and near. Jinggang Town has a rich history and culture, with rivers, temples, and ancient buildings in one, with a beautiful environment and beautiful scenery. There are 15 Neolithic sites here, with a large number of stone tools and pottery unearthed. Local specialties such as wooden clogs, paper umbrellas, and kites were once popular, and folk art is rich and colorful. Jinggang Shadow Puppet Art Museum, located between Bayuantang and Hongtaifang, two old scenic spots, exhibits nearly 2000 items such as scripts, musical instruments, props, and historical documents. The scripts and Gongchi scores from the Ming and Qing Dynasties show the long history of shadow puppetry. Tools such as travel boxes and clear oil lamps, as well as traditional musical instruments such as Jinghu, gongs, and cymbals, reveal the livelihood of old artists. Bayuantang, also known as Ningxiang Guild Hall, was built by the boatmen of Ningxiang Baibu during the Xianfeng period of the Qing Dynasty, serving as a meeting and office place for the staff of Ningxiang Shipyard at that time. The guild hall is a brick and wood structure, with a wooden stage of more than 20 square meters in the middle, and a hall in front of the stage, which can accommodate hundreds of people. The hall is beautifully decorated with carved beams and painted rafters, worth a look. 📍Detailed address: Jinggang Ancient Town: Jinggang Town, Wangcheng District, Changsha City, Hunan Province Ticket: Free admission