Beijing, a city where ancient history merges with modernity, holds countless stories and cultural treasures within its Hutongs. The museums nestled in these alleyways are like dazzling pearls, radiating unique charm and bearing the memories of history. Let us now step into these distinctive Hutong museums to uncover their mysteries.
The Shijia Hutong Museum
The Shijia Hutong Museum is the first of its kind in Beijing, a community museum that carries the culture and memories of old Beijing. The historical layout of the courtyard, the grey bricks and tiles, and the wooden doors and windows have preserved the charm of a traditional Siheyuan. Two robust plane trees cover half of the courtyard with their shade.
This place was once the former residence of Ling Shuhua, one of the three great talents of the Republic of China period. Cultural celebrities such as Rabindranath Tagore, Hu Shi, Ding Xilin, Xu Zhimo, and Lin Huiyin were once guests here. Later, Ling Shuhua's daughter, Ms. Chen Xiaoying, transferred the property rights of this residence to the street for public welfare, establishing this Hutong museum.
The museum covers an area of more than 1000 square meters, with 8 exhibition halls and a multifunctional hall. The exhibitions inside are rich and diverse, restoring the Hutong life of that time through various exhibits. Among them, the miniature landscape of Shijia Hutong in the first exhibition hall is impressive. It restores the old appearance of Shijia Hutong, very delicate, allowing people to intuitively feel the historical changes of this Hutong.
In the Cradle of the People's Art exhibition hall, the establishment and development of the People's Art in Shijia Hutong can be clearly traced; the modern education exhibition hall introduces the "Left Wing Zongxue" of the Qing Dynasty and the relevant matters of "studying in the United States at the end of the Qing Dynasty"; the Lan Zhi Xie Fang exhibition hall showcases Ling Shuhua's life and main works in a thematic form, and presents the scene of cultural celebrities gathering here at that time. In addition, there is an exhibition hall introducing the many celebrities who once lived in Shijia Hutong, such as the portrait of the great eunuch Li Lianying, the chairman of the Sino-French Bank at the end of the Qing Dynasty, Liu Fucheng, the foreign minister of the Qing Dynasty, Hong Jun, and other celebrities from all walks of life fill the entire exhibition hall.
In addition to static exhibitions, the Shijia Hutong Museum also has a unique sound display. In the special room of the "Memory of the Times" exhibition hall, as long as you click on the touch screen, you can hear more than 70 kinds of "Hutong sounds" from different time periods, such as "Zhenjinggui" and "Hu Changzi", which makes people seem to be instantly transported back to the past.
The important characteristic that distinguishes the Shijia Hutong Museum from general museums is its strong community attribute. Its exhibitions condense the historical culture and Hutong life of old Beijing. The "Cultural Exhibition Hall" continues to explore local culture, allowing visitors to enter, understand, and fall in love with the Hutong through activities and exhibitions, feeling the life in the Hutong; the "Community Meeting Hall" creates a social governance pattern of co-construction, co-governance, and sharing; the "Residents' Living Room" provides a space for residents to exchange activities, mobilizing residents to volunteer to explain, making the museum a "living room" with old Beijing characteristics and rich human feelings.
Address: No. 24 Shijia Hutong, Dongcheng District, Beijing
The Dongsi Hutong Museum
The Dongsi Hutong Museum, located at No. 77 Dongsi Si Tiao, Dongcheng District, Beijing, is a distinctive museum showcasing the rich history of hutongs.
Upon entering the museum, you are greeted by an exquisitely crafted hanging flower gate to the north side, flanked by slogans from the last century such as "Serve the people wholeheartedly." Delving deeper, the second courtyard displays the characteristics of old Beijing's hutong residences, such as Siheyuan, Guangliang Gate, Jinzhu Gate, Ruyi Gate, and Man Gate, as well as architectural elements like inverted eaves, cantilevered cornices, door brackets, swallow tails, bofeng heads, screens, and drip edges. The museum also exhibits many old items, such as bows passed down through generations, wardrobes from the Republic of China period, fish tanks, Lu Ban stools, and sock boards. The historical and cultural exhibition area showcases the golden nanmu lotus stools, bofeng heads, ancient architectural components, and old city bricks from the 22nd year of Jiaqing's reign, along with dozens of old photos of Dongsi, vividly presenting the bygone years of Dongsi.
The courtyard also features two artistic works, "Moon Shadow" and "Starry Sky," both inspired by the ancient Chinese concept of a round heaven and a square earth, as well as the important ancient Chinese astronomical instrument, the armillary sphere. The shape of "Moon Shadow" is refined based on the elements of the armillary sphere, connecting the first and second courtyards; the "Starry Sky" sphere is engraved with the twenty-eight lunar mansions, forming a main thread of time and space with "Moon Shadow," building a bridge across time, space, ethnicity, and culture in the Siheyuan of the national historical and cultural block, a creative work combining Chinese traditional culture with modern artistic culture.
The museum's exhibition space is divided into dynamic and static areas, including the Dongsi Impression Exhibition Area, Impression Tile House Exhibition Area, Cultural Exploration Exhibition Area, Cultural Exchange Living Room, and Historical and Cultural Physical Exhibition Area, presented to the public in the form of a "Cultural Living Room."
If you are interested in the hutong culture and traditional architecture of old Beijing, the Dongsi Hutong Museum is definitely a great place to visit. Here, you can personally experience the unique charm of the Siheyuan and appreciate the profound historical heritage and humanistic charm of old Beijing.
Address: No. 77 Dongsi Si Tiao, Dongcheng District, Beijing
The No. 93 Courtyard Museum
The No. 93 Courtyard Museum is located at No. 93 Tieshu Xie Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, and serves as an important base for the dissemination and experience of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) and folk art.
Situated in the culturally rich Liuli Factory Dashilar area of Xicheng District, this museum utilizes a traditional residential building to create a space for experiencing, displaying, and exchanging traditional Chinese cultural arts.
Here, you can enjoy a variety of representative Beijing ICH cultural products, such as monkey figurines, facial masks, kites, paper-cuttings, and rabbit deities, all exquisitely crafted and lifelike. The museum is divided into two exhibition halls; the front hall mainly displays and sells works personally made by ICH inheritors, while the back hall hosts various non-profit exhibitions and activities based on festivals or other themes, showcasing ICH works to the public.
The No. 93 Courtyard Museum is not only a "revitalization" of the idle old buildings in the Dashilar Liuli Factory historical and cultural district of Xicheng District but also serves as a pioneering pilot for a group of small and micro museums. It has a demonstrative significance in exploring the transformation of old cities, the protection and utilization of cultural relics, the protection and reuse of cultural heritage, and the transformation and upgrading of traditional cultural industries.
Lin Wei, the curator, stated that the scientific and rational reuse of old buildings is an effective way to "revive" and "revitalize" them. The museum has achieved comprehensive resource integration through a combination of online and offline platforms, as well as media and industry, contributing to the inheritance and development of "intangible cultural heritage."
In addition, the No. 93 Courtyard Museum is open to the public for free and holds various ICH cultural exhibition and experience activities from time to time, such as two ICH cultural exhibitions per month, and ICH and folk handicraft making experience exchange activities, allowing people to closely experience the charm of traditional culture. It acts as a window, showcasing the richness of ICH culture and providing a platform for ICH inheritors to communicate. If you are interested in Chinese traditional culture and ICH arts, the No. 93 Courtyard Museum is a great place to visit.
Address: No. 93 Courtyard Museum, Tieshu Xiejie(St), Dashilar, Xicheng District, Beijing
The Fayuan Museum
Photo:Official web portal for the Dongcheng District People’s Government of Beijing Municipality
The Fayuan Museum, located at No. 85 Dajiang Hutong, Qianmen East Road, Dongcheng District, Beijing (inside the Jizhou Guild Hall), is a niche museum established by architect and artist Zhu Xiaodi in 2020 and officially opened on May 18, 2022.
This museum primarily showcases the finest examples of traditional Chinese architectural woodworking. The name "Fayuan" is derived from the work "Yingzao Fayuan" by Mr. Yao Chengzu, a master of construction at the end of the Qing Dynasty, as a tribute to folk architecture and craftsmen. The museum houses over a hundred pieces of exquisite wooden components from Mr. Zhu Xiaodi's personal collection, which are sourced from various regions including Shanxi, Shaanxi, Anhui, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong.
Upon entering, visitors are greeted by a dazzling array of beautifully carved exhibits such as columns, beams, brackets, sparrow braces, and flower windows. For instance, there is a wooden carved gate building from the Ming Dynasty in Shanxi, with characters dressed in the attire of nomadic ethnic groups and a pair of wings on their backs, reflecting the deep integration of ethnicities and cultural exchange of the time.
Photo:Official web portal for the Dongcheng District People’s Government of Beijing Municipality
In addition to the permanent exhibition hall displaying ancient architectural woodwork, the Fayuan Museum also features a temporary exhibition hall that changes themes periodically. The current exhibition, Container, Yeast, Lighthouse - He Wei's Rural Architectural Practice, which opened on April 14, 2024, will last until August 15, showcasing He Wei's achievements in rural construction.
The museum, located in a courtyard that was once the Jizhou Guild Hall from Jiangxi and the Guizhou Guild Hall during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, has now been transformed into a niche museum bearing traditional architectural symbols. Visitors can appreciate the woodworking, visit the guild hall, explore urban memories, and relax with a book in the café or architectural study area on the second floor, overlooking the green bricks and gray tiles of Qianmen, and experiencing the slow pace of life in the old city.
Address: No. 85 Dajiang Hutong, Dongcheng District, Beijing
