Siheyuan
Siheyuan is a combined architectural form in civil residences in North China. It is a square or rectangular courtyard. Each family lives in a closed courtyard, leading a comfortable, leisurely and quiet life, enjoying family joy and family fun, and naturally has a leisurely and contented atmosphere.
This kind of courtyard house is a legacy from the old society before the founding of New China, and is still in use today. This kind of courtyard generally uses one entrance and exit gate. Normally, once the courtyard door is closed, it is in a completely closed state. Most of the courtyard gates of courtyard houses are wooden gates. One end of the door made of thick wooden boards is placed on the axis, and it can be opened and closed by rotating left and right, which is safe and reliable. In the courtyard, there is the main room, which is the north room. This is the main room in the courtyard, and generally the direction of a courtyard is from north to south. On the east and west sides are the east and west wing rooms. The east and west wing rooms are generally relatively symmetrical, and the architectural formats are generally the same or similar. There is a south room built on the south side, corresponding to the north room. The entire courtyard is mostly built in symmetry according to traditional Chinese customs. Of course, there are also ear rooms in the corners formed by the north, south, and east and west rooms. Some of these ear rooms are used to store grain and become grain depots and other warehouses. , some are used as kitchens, and there is also a corner, usually the southwest corner is the toilet, and the southeast corner is mostly the gate of the courtyard. This four-in-one courtyard format is more common in Shanxi counties and nearby rural areas. There are also some courtyards where the main door opens in the south direction.
Some families, in order to decorate the courtyard, build a screen wall directly opposite the entrance to the courtyard. A brick wall. On the side facing the door, there are usually flowers, pine and bamboo patterns or large calligraphy characters placed prominently on the front of the screen wall. There are also auspicious words such as "Fu", "Lu" and "Shou". Part of the screen wall is painted with auspicious patterns, such as "Songs and Cranes Prolong the Year", "Magpies Climbing Plum Blossoms", "Qilin Sending Children", etc., creating a scholarly atmosphere in the courtyard. Some farmers also use "grain". The words or pictures of "good luck", "good luck" and "blessings like the East China Sea". This kind of screen wall is located at the entrance inside the gate. Some are built separately, and some are mounted on the gables of the wing rooms. The screen wall is also called a screen wall. , the walls are all square, surrounded by brick carvings, and the middle square is for calligraphy or painting. The screen wall is divided into two parts: the base and the wall. In addition to adding atmosphere to the courtyard and praying for good luck, the screen wall also plays a role. The isolation effect makes it difficult for outsiders to peek into the activities inside the courtyard.
Some courtyards have paved floors, some have bricks, and some have cobblestones. Some have completely paved floors. There are also cases where the main passage is paved. No matter how it is paved, there should always be some space left in the courtyard to plant trees and flowers as decorations for the courtyard.
With the development of the times, there are now some architectural features. Many changes. In rural areas, most of them have undergone major changes from the original courtyard houses. This is to expand the number of rooms in the main house, because the main house - the north house has good lighting. Therefore, when building the house, it is necessary to make it as full as possible. Utilizing the space and ground on the north side, the courtyard becomes irregular. A square or rectangular courtyard is formed in front of the main house, which is dominated by the north house.
The distribution of residences in the courtyard is very strict. The main room in the inner house has a superior location and is reserved for the older generation of gentlemen and wives.
Only the middle one of the three rooms in the north opens to the outside, which is called the main room. The two rooms on both sides only open to the main room. Open the door to form a suite, with one light and two darks. The main room is a place where family members live, entertain relatives, or worship ancestors during festivals. There are also bedrooms on both sides.
There are also bedrooms on the east and west sides. In the polygamy system, the east side is the upper house and is occupied by the main room, while the west side is the lower house and is occupied by the side rooms.
The east and west side rooms can have separate doors or can be separated from the main room. The rooms are connected and are generally used as bedrooms or study rooms. The east and west wing rooms are occupied by the younger generation. The wing rooms are also light and dark, with the middle room being a living room and the two sides being bedrooms.
You can also divide the room on the south side and use it as a kitchen or dining room. Back-house - medium-sized or larger quadrangles often have back-houses or back-houses, mainly for women or maids who have not left the pavilion.
Siheyuan is an independent courtyard composed of the main house (usually the north house), the east and west wing rooms, and the south house. Shelter from wind and rain.
Hutongs in Beijing generally run east-west and are mainly used for pedestrians. The courtyard door in the north of the alley usually opens in the southeast corner of the courtyard, and the courtyard door in the south usually opens in the west corner of the courtyard. Siheyuan is a typical residential form in Beijing.
Generally, quadrangle courtyards have two courtyards, and large ones have three or four courtyards and flower courtyards. The two-entry courtyard usually has a partition wall built between the east and west wing rooms, and the outer house is usually where the staff live. , a luxurious hanging flower door is usually built between the inner and outer houses. There is a screen wall inside the hanging flower door, which is only opened when there are important events. In the old days, it was said that the young lady of a wealthy family could not go out through the front door, and the second door was not open. This refers to this door, and the male servants at home. Generally, you are not allowed to enter this door. The street gate is relatively simple and is usually built on the left side of the yard. The last row of main rooms in a large courtyard house is the back room.
Old Beijingers are very particular. For example, they cannot plant locust trees in front of their courtyards, because in the past, a kind of insect would fall from the locust trees, which is also known as the hanged ghost. They were worried that passers-by would say, "Why are there so many hanged ghosts here?" Ah." Because mulberry trees have the same pronunciation as "mourning", there are no mulberry trees planted near the courtyard. Most Beijingers like to plant oleander in their yards.
Siheyuan is a traditional residential form in Beijing. It first took shape in the Liao Dynasty. It was gradually improved through the Jin, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, and eventually became the most distinctive residential form in Beijing.
The so-called Sihe, "four" refers to the east, west, south and north sides, and "he" means that the houses on the four sides are surrounded together to form a "kou" shape. After hundreds of years of construction, Beijing's courtyard houses have formed the capital's unique Beijing style from their floor plan to internal structure and detailed decoration.
Beijing’s formal courtyard houses generally face south along an east-west alley. The basic shape is the north room (main room), south room (inverted room), east and west wing rooms, which are separated from each other. Use high walls to form a quadrangle and open a door. The gate is located at the "Xun" position in the southeast corner of the house. The total number of rooms is generally 3 in the north room, 5 rooms in each side, 3 in the east and west rooms, and 4 in the south room including the main door and hanging flower door. If each room is 11-12 square meters, the total area is about 200 square meters. In the middle of the courtyard is the courtyard, which is spacious and planted with trees and flowers and tanks for raising goldfish. It is the center of the courtyard's layout and is also a place for people to walk through, get light, ventilate, enjoy the cool, rest and do housework. ?