Ancient Towns of Folk Culture

It would be a pity to miss the folk customs during a visit to Shaanxi; however, it is difficult to experience all of them as they spread over every corner of the land. In order to preserve the scattered national cultural heritages, many folk cultural parks and exhibition halls emerge. And the ancient towns, which survive the changes through ages, deliver the Shaanxi flavor more thoroughly. They are the witnesses of Shaanxi’s profound folk culture.

Shaanxi Folk Cultural Park

Shaanxi Folk Cultural Park is located in the west of the Dayan Pagoda Square. The beautiful park is covered with trees and flowers, and displays the sculptures depicting the well-noted peculiarities of Shaanxi local people’s customs. It is really a good place to take a break as well as to learn Shaanxi folk culture.

Residence of the Gao Family

The residence of the Gao Family is situated at Beiyuanmen Muslim street north of the Drum Tower in Xi’an. It used to be the home of an official in ancient times. The courtyard covers an area of over 2,000 square meters and is exquisitely decorated with traditional furnishings such as carved screens, lanterns and bamboo curtains. It is a nice place to enjoy the elegance of Chinese ancient buildings over a cup of tea.

Guanzhong Cultural Park

Guanzhong Cultural Park is located in Fufeng County, Baoji City. The park offers handicrafts, typical Shaanxi local foods, and folk performances like the shadow puppet show. In the park, visitors can enjoy various famous local flavors of Shaanxi, and experience the traditional way of work and life by practicing weaving, sowing and reaping.

Guanzhong Folk Art Museum

Guanzhong Folk Art Museum is situated at the foot of the South Wutai Mountain. It is comprised of 40 courtyards of buildings such as restored Ming and Qing folk residences, folk custom exhibition halls, opera stages and craft workshops. Besides, it exhibits thousands of items including tablets, hitching posts, calligraphies and paintings, carvings as well as articles for daily use, farming and transportation tools in central Shaanxi during the dynasties of Zhou, Qin, Han, Tang, Ming and Qing. Guanzhong Folk Art Museum displays the folk life and cultural exchanges of people in northern China thousands of years ago.

Dangjia Village

Dangjia Village is located in Hancheng City. It enjoys the same fame with Suzhou and Lijiang, reputed as “the pearl of folk architecture.” It is even considered as the symbol of Chinese folk architecture by international experts.

①Shaanxi Folk Cultural Park
②Guanzhong Folk Art Museum

Ancient Town of Qingmuchuan

The famous Ancient Town of Qingmuchuan is situated in the northwest of Ningqiang County, Hanzhong. It lies at the very location where Shaanxi, Gansu and Sichuan meet. The town was first built in the Ming Dynasty and shaped in the Qing Dynasty. However, it became extremely prosperous during the period of the Republic of China (1912-1949). The long history endows the town with abundant cultural relics. Various ancient streets, ancestral temples, trestles and buildings are well-preserved in the Ancient Town of Qingmuchuan.

Mansion of Jiang Family

The Mansion of Jiang Family lies 16 kilometers away from Mizhi County, Yulin. The mansion was owned by the rich Jiang Family in the Qing Dynasty. It was well designed by experts and consumed thirteen years of hard work of the builders. The exquisite mansion is the only castle-like cave dwelling in China.

Ancient Town of Fenghuang

The Ancient Town of Fenghuang is located in Zhashui County, Shangluo. It was built at the end of the Ming Dynasty and prospered during the late Qing Dynasty. The buildings in the town feature a traditional Chinese courtyard style and are well preserved with a history of two hundred years.