In fact, among the scenic spots in Guangzhou, the most popular among foreign tourists is not the landmark "Xiaoman Waist" in Guangzhou, but an antique Lingnan ancestral hall with profound cultural heritage. It is called Chenjia Temple, which is the best preserved and largest ancestral temple in Guangdong. It is also known as the "crown of Baiyue Temple" and the first "big house door" in Lingnan.
Chenjiaci is familiar to Guangzhou people. It is not only a popular site of Guangzhou Metro Line 1, but also the most artistic complex with Guangdong characteristics among the existing ancestral temples in Guangdong. Located in Zhongshan No.7 Road, Guangzhou, it is one of the "Eight Scenes of Yangcheng in the New Century" and also a national key cultural relics protection unit. Chenjiaci is famous for its concentrated achievements in folk architectural decoration art in Lingnan area, and it can be called Lingnan Architectural Art and Folk Craft Museum. According to historical records, in the 14th year of Guangxu in Qing Dynasty (1888), the ancestral hall was jointly built by the Chen family in 72 counties in Guangdong at that time, and was completed in the 20th year of Guangxu in Qing Dynasty (1894), making it the largest clan ancestral hall in South China.
After careful calculation, this ancestral hall has a history of 120 years, and it has long been famous and highly respected. As early as the1920s, German scholars had included the Chen Family Temple in the book "World Architectural Art" and regarded it as a typical example of Lingnan architectural art, while Mr. Guo Moruo, a great writer, even praised it with his poems, calling it "unnatural as the sky".
Today, as one of the most important cultural business cards in Guangzhou, Chenjiaci has an extremely important position in the local area and is regarded as the treasure of Lingnan architectural art. The whole building covers an area of 15000 square meters and consists of 19 single buildings, with the middle road as the main line, halls and rooms on both sides enclosed, courtyards and cloisters interspersed, and the hall is magnificent and beautiful. It is a very typical Lingnan folk ancestral temple art building.
It can be said that Chenjiaci has gathered the essence of Lingnan architectural art and is famous at home and abroad for its superb architectural decoration art. There are countless wood carvings, stone carvings, brick carvings, pottery sculptures, gray sculptures, copper and iron castings and murals here, which are beautifully decorated and beautifully shaped, showing the outstanding wisdom and skills of folk craftsmen, and every detail is worth savoring.
Chenjiaci has superb artistic attainments, and the most wonderful part is on the roof. On the roof of a typical Lingnan building, there are all kinds of gorgeous and exquisite sculptures, flowers and plants, complicated decorations, vivid shapes and vivid images. The carving techniques are simple and extensive, and finely crafted. When you come here, everyone can't help but exclaim when they look up and see the sculpture on the roof.
Regarding the use of the Chen Family Temple, it was originally used as the Chen Family Temple and the temporary residence of the Chen family's younger brother in Guangdong, and later changed to the Chen Academy. Now it is used as a museum of culture and art and a famous tourist attraction for tourists to visit. In addition to the exquisite achievements of Lingnan architecture, there is also a folk art exhibition hall, which collects various Lingnan artworks such as Cantonese embroidery, paper-cutting and Chaoshan wood carving, which is quite interesting.