Zengchong Drum Tower

Zengchong Drum Tower

Zengchong Drum Tower is located in Xiangdong Town, 82 kilometers northwest of Congjiang County, Qiandongnan Prefecture. It was built in 1672 (the 11th year of Kangxi reign of Qing Dynasty), covering an area of 160 square meters. It is the oldest, largest and best preserved Dong Drum Tower in Guizhou Province.

The unique folk architecture of the Dong nationality is a place for the Dong people to gather together to discuss business, settle disputes, welcome and see off guests, sing duet songs, blow Sheng and step on the hall and other major activities.

Zengchong Drum Tower not only preserves the characteristics of ancient Chinese architecture, but also has a strong national style. It has a large scale, beautiful shape, exquisite workmanship and high value.

In November 1985, Guizhou Provincial People's government announced it as a key cultural relics protection unit at the provincial level; in January 1988, the State Council announced it as a key cultural relics protection unit at the national level.

In 2006, Dong wooden architecture construction technology was listed in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list.

Basic introduction

Zengchong Drum Tower was first built in the 11th year of Kangxi reign of Qing Dynasty (1672 AD). It is a Chinese fir structure with pagoda shape, double gourd top, a total of 13 floors, octagonal cusp top, 25 meters high, of which the wooden frame is 17.65 meters high, covering an area of 160 square meters. It was repaired in Daoguang and Guangxu times. In 1982, the Guizhou provincial government allocated funds twice to repair it, which restored its original appearance.

According to historical records, it has been more than 600 years since Zeng Chong Dong village was built. Over the past 600 years, the Dong people of Zeng Chong have created countless miracles from generation to generation.

This century old building, with its superb and complex architectural structure, exquisite production technology and unique shape, attracts tourists from all over the country, as well as experts and scholars who study traditional villages of ancient buildings.

When the village has something to discuss or steps on the song hall during the festival, it beats the big leather drum. The villagers in the village gather in the drum tower hall to listen to the elder's orders. On weekdays, the drum tower hall in zengchong is a public place for leisure. Zengchong Drum Tower is one of the most famous drum towers in Dong township. It has the longest history and the largest structure in Guizhou Province. It is listed as a national first-class cultural relic. Zengchong village, surrounded by mountains and streams on three sides, can also be regarded as the representative of Dong village. The drum tower, the stage, the flower bridge and the stilted buildings around the drum tower are picturesque and beautiful.

In June 1997, the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications of the people's Republic of China issued a set of four stamps on Dong architecture, one of which is the zengchong Drum Tower. It can be seen from this that zengchong drum tower plays an important role in the colorful buildings of Dong village, which are composed of countless drum towers, flower bridges, theatres and stilts.

architectural style

The foundation of zengchong Drum Tower covers an area of more than 160 square meters. It is a tower like building of wood structure, with five floors, thirteen eaves, octagonal cusp, pagoda like shape and double gourd top. It is 25 meters high, of which the wooden frame is 17.65 meters high, of which the wooden frame is 17.65 meters high. The bottom floor of the building is divided into four gold pillars and eight eaves pillars, which are surrounded by wooden railings. The plane of the building is octagonal, with a circular fire pool with a diameter of 1.4 meters in the center, and four large benches are placed between the gold pillars. The south, North and west sides of the ground floor each have a door, and the east side has a stone table. On the ground floor of the building, there is a plaque of the 10th year of Daoguang (1830). On the plaque, there are four characters: "Wanli Hefeng". In addition, there are four wooden couplets, one of which is "famous building art high, Carving Dragon and painting Phoenix, reflecting the eternal prosperity of green trees; Dong Village beautiful and refined culture, supporting the cultivation of talents in Changchun"; the other is "dragon and Phoenix presenting auspicious scenery, the pavilion towering against the sky; wind and cloud gathering, mountains rolling around the blue waves"; the third is "things in the sky, Baolong Pavilion, Fengge, shining brilliantly; outstanding people, Lingshan, clear water show, reflecting the waves"; the fourth is "hundred flowers" Fulong palace gathers people to discuss business and beat golden drum; Wanshou Fengge gathers folk songs and dances to celebrate jade tower. There is no fixed ladder from the ground floor to the second floor of zengchong Drum Tower, but there are still holes in the floor. Above the second floor, there are fixed ladders. In order to make the smoke easy to spread, the second, third and fourth floors are only equipped with floors outside the gold pillars, and the empty wells are formed inside the gold pillars. Wooden railings are placed between the gold pillars and the periphery of each floor. A wooden drum is hung on the top of the five story building, and is in charge of the village. 4、 There is a long eaves on the fifth floor. Under the eaves is a ruyi bucket arch, which can not only bear load, but also be an ornament.

The upper two floors are the top of the drum tower. The two layers are of bucket arch structure with staggered holes and exquisite workmanship. In the highest Pavilion, there is a 3-meter-long, 50 cm diameter cowhide drum, which is used to summon the villagers to discuss affairs and report to the police. There are stairs in the drum tower, winding up to the first floor where the big drum is placed. The whole drum tower is made of Chinese fir. It is pagoda shaped, with double gourd top. The top of the tower is ceramic beads, which point to the sky. There are several pieces of inscriptions in the drum tower. The earliest one was engraved in the 11th year of Kangxi (1672 AD).

folk culture

Drum Tower culture "is a folk architecture culture system represented by" Dong Village Drum Tower ", including drum tower, theater, Huaqiao (Fengyu bridge) and other Dong architecture. The areas of Liping, Congjiang and Rongjiang in the southeast corner of Guizhou Province are highly inhabited by Dong people. Historically, "Dong" was used as the administrative unit in the area, so the villagers in the area were called "Dong people", "Dong people" or "Dong people". It is said that this is the origin of Dong People's appellation. Dong people call themselves "Gan".

Dongzhai Drum Tower is like a big fir tree, which is called "shade tree" by villagers. It can be seen that it comes from nature and is the specific application of Bionics in architectural culture. The former is not only the social activity center of Dong villagers, but also the place of political and cultural activities. Among more than 300 Dong Village drum towers in Guizhou, "zengchong Drum Tower" in Congjiang County is the earliest, largest and most exquisite one. This building was built in the early Qing Dynasty, with 13 double eaves and octagonal cusp structure. It is more than 20 meters high and covers an area of more than 100 square meters. In 1988, it was announced by the State Council as a national key cultural relics protection unit. Nearby, there is a Fengyu bridge, which is also a part of zengchong Drum Tower. Probably in order not to compete with the drum tower for the leading role, he is willing to be a supporting role, not carving or painting, and is simple and unadorned. He only sculptures auspicious animals at the bridgehead as "protective gods".

Dong people like to sing Dong opera. There are many theatres in Dong villages, some of which have four or five. Most of the theatres in Dong village are built in the center of the village, closely combined with Drum Tower and Geping, forming the "heart" of Dong village. Dong opera was initiated by Wu Wencai, a famous dramatist. Because Dong opera is developed on the basis of Dong folk songs and folktales and has a good mass base, it is easy to popularize. Therefore, a large number of theatrical buildings have been built in response to the transportation. There are more than 100 theatrical buildings in Congjiang County alone.

Dongzhai theater is built of fine fir wood, which is rich in Dongxiang. The floor is mostly covered with fir bark, and some are also covered with small green tiles. On the ridge of the gaiwa building, there are two dragon sculptures in the middle of the building. At the end of the ridge, the fish is carved with high wings and angles. The stage is 13 to 14 meters wide and 7 to 8 meters deep. In front of the stage, there are many wood carvings decorated with dragons and phoenixes, stories of characters, flowers, birds, insects and fish. They are colorful and full of strong national style. Dong Village theater has a common feature, that is, most of them are built on fish ponds. This not only saves land, but also facilitates fire and moisture prevention. What's particularly interesting is that when performing on the stage and raising fish off the stage, people enjoy fish leaping, which makes each other interesting.

Dong people like to live by the water. Streams, flowing water and small bridges are the main features of Dong village. If there is a river and water, there will be a bridge. According to incomplete statistics, there are more than 300 wind and rain bridges in Liping, Congjiang and Rongjiang counties. The bridge is originally a water transportation facility, but in addition to being used as a transportation facility, the wind and rain bridge in Dongzhai also has the functions of decorating rivers and mountains and cultivating Fengshui. Dong customs believe that the construction of Fengyu bridge at the end of the village can keep the wealth of the village from flowing away. Fengyu bridge in Dong village is not only a symbol of wealth, but also a guarantee of wealth.

Many fengyuqiao, painted plastic, colorful, known as "Huaqiao.". Among the numerous flower bridges, the "floor flower bridge" in Liping county is the most spectacular. The bridge spans Nanjiang River, with a total length of 57 meters. There are three pavilions on the corridor, and one in the middle is similar to the drum tower, which is called "Huaqiao Drum Tower". In the corridor of this Fengyu bridge and on the Drum Tower of Huaqiao, there are more than 20 Dong folk paintings, such as Dong Gu spinning, Dong Gu brocade, Riptide platoon, Sheng blowing competition, duel between two oxen, singing and sitting on the moon, Nanjiang scenery and so on. Diping Fengyu bridge was announced as a national key cultural relics protection unit in 2001.

Function introduction

Drum tower plays an important role in Dong People's life. It is not only the political center of Dong People's assembly and discussion, but also a place for people to worship, rest and entertainment. It is also a court for village elders to deal with disputes and judge right and wrong. In case of emergency, it becomes a command post for drumming. In addition, it is also a place for young men and women in the village to communicate and love each other. Almost all the places where Dong people live together have Drum Tower, which has become an important symbol of Dong village.

Dong villagers believe that the drum tower has ten major uses

Gather together for discussion

When there is a big and important matter, it is decided by collective discussion, which is called "starting payment". Under the leadership of the "fund head", the "fund agreement" is formulated by "fund public". After the "money about" passed, carved steles and stone, standing in the drum tower.

Drumming for news

In the event of a major event, they went upstairs and drummed, and everyone heard the call. Drumming can be used to report good news to the police. Villagers can use drumming to report good news

Chinese PinYin : Zeng Chong Gu Lou