Zhu Douwen's Residence

Released on:2006-10-25

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The old-fashioned villa on Kangding Road' which is now the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference of Jing'an District used to be the mansion of Zhu Douwen, one of the powerful and influential families. Zhu Douwen was a grandson of Dao Tai (an official title in Qing Dynasty) Zhu Hongdu who was the person to set up a private textile factory. Yuyuan textile mills and Yutong Flour Mills run by him covered all parts of the country.

This mansion built in 1926 covers an area of 600 square meters with a 1468-square-meter built-up area and an area of lawn of 500 square meters. It is a separate villa facing the south. This building embodied classical European style with its brick-and-concrete structure and colossal built areas. It is divided into 2 stories, though it apparently contains 3 stories. The main entrance of this building faces the south and has an arched porch in the center. To the west of the main entrance is a canopy with elegant lines. The second floor has also an arched balcony, which is harmoniously connected with the arched porch, making the two as one body. Four round pillars run from the ground floor up to the second floor. The 3rd floor is an open balcony with vase-like handrails, sloping roof with red tiles. This building has four chimneys to pop out its balance in perpendicular portal and its symmetrical style. The decoration is elegant and the management of space is brisk. In the eastern portal is a hall sticking out of the building with a vaulted door above which is the vase-like open balcony. In the south part of the eastern perpendicular portal are round windows sticking out of the building. The interior decoration is highly refined and the garden is extravagant with trees, flowers and lawns. The former huge lawn was divided and there is no way to find any trace of the magnificent marriage feast while the easiness and convergence of the influential families is still visible in nowadays use of this building.

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