Tongli Ancient Town is located in Wujiang District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province. It has a subtropical monsoon climate. Some of its main attractions include Ming and Qing Street, Tongli Wetland Park, and various temples, gardens, and former residences that were built during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The town's history can be traced back thousands of years, and it became an official town during the Song Dynasty. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the town expanded further and became an important economic and cultural center in the region. It was recognized as a protected cultural heritage site by UNESCO in 2000.

1. G
Tong li ancient town
eographic location:Wujiang District, Suzhou
City, Jiangsu Province
hanjourney.com

2. Level:AAAAA
Famous scenery:Ming and Qing Street, Tongli
Wetland Park.
Climate type:Subtropical monsoon climate
Tongli Ancient Town belongs to Wujiang District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu
Province, and the town of Song Dynasty. In the town area, the
gardens, temples, houses, and celebrities were built in the Ming and
Qing Dynasties. The 15 rivers in the shape of “Chuan” divide the
ancient town into seven small islands, and the 49 ancient bridges
connect them. One, known as “small bridge, flowing water, people”.
Historical evolution
The history of Tongli can be traced back to the “Zhuze Culture” and
“Liangzhu Culture” five or six thousand years ago. As early as the
Neolithic Age, there were ancestors here to slash and burn, and to
live and multiply. The superior natural conditions make this the most
affluent place in Wudi, so it was originally called “rich soil.”
The pre-Qin has become a market, under the Wu County of Huiji
County, Hantang Day is prosperous.
At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, because his name was too
extravagant, he was renamed Tongli. Still a village, in the village of
Jiuli. After the Kaiping Kaiping three years (909 years), Wu Yue Wang
Qianyu was drawn to the south of Wu County, the north of Jiaxing,
and placed in Wujiang County, Tongli is the hometown of Wujiang
County.
In the Song Dynasty, the waste-sensing township, Tongli Fanyu
Township, officially built the town. Put the old name “rich soil” on
top of each other, go up to the point, then divide the word into two,

3. the first half is “same”, the lower half “field” and “soil” add up and
become the same.
During the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, Tongli gradually moved to the
south, because the three things in the town turned to the city, and
became the “chuan” type, also known as “Tongchuan.” In the Han
Dynasty, the Han Dynasty became a market, and it was originally
called “Bengbu City”. During the years of Song Jianyan, there were
more than a thousand people living here.
In the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, “Yi City is a village.” In the 16th year
of Yuanzhizheng (1356), Zhang Shicheng and Zhang Shide, according
to Wu Jiang, divided the troops of Tan Daoji and defended the city of
Dongguan, and controlled the Xiuzhou and Songjiang. During the
Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, there were hundreds of residents,
and more than half of the ironworkers. After that, the residents
increased slightly and they became self-contained. In the first year of
Hongzhi in the Ming Dynasty (1488), Yucun was a town of Jiuxiang in
Wujiang County.
The administrative area of the Qing Emperor Qianlong was re-
adjusted. In the same place in the town of Tongli, the water-soiled a
few acres of the release of the river to build a house, “also become a
downtown”, called “new landfill.” The town continued to expand to
the southeast. In the second year of Xuantong (1910), regional
autonomy was promoted.
In the first year of the Republic of China, the city office was
established in Tongli.
In October 1985, Tongli Township and Township were merged to
implement the township management system.
In 1980, Tongli Ancient Town was listed as one of the scenic spots of
the National Taihu Lake Scenic Area. In 1982, it was listed as a
provincial-level cultural relics protection unit.
In 1992, it was listed as a provincial-level cultural relics protection
town. In 2000, Retreat was included in the World Cultural Heritage
by UNESCO.

4. In 2010, it was assessed as a national 5A-level tourist scenic spot by
the National Tourism Administration.
Folk customs
Take the third bridge
It is a prayer activity for the people to seek help from the disaster.
The “three bridges” in the customs of the Three Bridges in Tongli are
three ancient stone bridges that are close to each other and are less
than 50 meters apart. They are located in the ancient town area of
Tongli: Taiping Bridge, Geely Bridge and Changqing Bridge. It is the
treasure of the bridge in the same town.
In 2011, Wujiang City (now Wujiang District) People’s Government
announced the custom of Tongli Sanqiao as the fourth batch of
Wujiang municipal intangible cultural heritage.

5. Playing the lotus
The lotus car is a folk-made instrumental music that has been
circulated in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai. It generally uses green
bamboo with a length of one meter and an inner diameter of about
two centimeters as the raw material. The artist will punch a hole in
the bamboo tube every 10 centimeters from the two ends, and insert
two copper coins in the hole (the hole is slightly larger than the
copper coin) You can shake the copper coins and fix them with a
screw nut, and tie the red, green and yellow ribbon here. Generally,
three holes are made at each end, and three pairs of colorful ribbons
are attached.
Playing the lotus box is the artist holding the lotus box, and playing
the songs, arms, shoulders and legs with the lotus box in various
ways. When dancing, the copper coins in the lotus chamber will make
a pleasant sound, and the colorful ribbons will also fly up and down.
At the beginning, the lotus show artists were generally men, dressed
in white and white trousers, performing in temple fairs and major
events. Later, the woman also played the lotus car. Women often
wear blue cloth prints and headbands with blue cloth floral
headbands, dancing in various festive places and festivals.

6. Main Attractions
Ming and Qing Street
One of the ancient town commercial streets. Built in 1996, it is more
than 160 meters long. It is an architectural style of the Ming and Qing
Dynasties. It completely preserves the parallel pattern of the streets
of Shangnan and Xiajie, which are unique to Jiangnan. The entrance
to the “Qingming legacy” is written by Fei Xiaotong.
Geng Letang
It is located in Xiliutun, the middle section of Lujiatun, and the east
facing river. It was built by Zhu Xiang, a sergeant of the Ming
Dynasty. It was written by the then Nanjing Guozijian Xuezheng and
Liren Modan. Zhu Xiang, the word Ting Rui, the number of farming
music. The name of the church is taken.

7. Tongli Wetland Park
It is located in the northeastern part of the town. It is adjacent to
Zhouzhuang, the ancient town of Jiangnan Water Town. It is bordered
by Chenghu in the north and Baiji Lake in the south. It is the only
place for Tongli and Zhouzhuang tourist routes. Metasequoia forest,
Chishan forest, Qinyuan, Xiangyuan, Ginkgo biloba, Taoyuan, herb
garden, green pear garden, bamboo forest garden, nursery, fish pond
and so on have been initially built in the park.
Wang Shaozhen Memorial Hall
At No. 35 Fuguan Street, the building area is 500 square meters, and
the exhibition area is 400 square meters. With the theme of
promoting Wang Shaozheng’s spirit, Wang Shaozhen’s revolutionary
battle is the main line, and the glorious achievements of Comrade
Wang Shaozhen are reproduced through physical objects, paintings

8. and pictures. Among them, the first floor is a special museum, which
displays documents, objects, pictures, texts, etc. The content is
divided into 12 parts, which show the experience of Comrade Wang
Shaozhen in different historical periods.
Song Shi Wu Yuan
Referred to as “Wuyuan”, the location of “Songping Stone Exhibition
Hall”, in Shipi Lane, adjacent to Geely, Taiping and Changqing
Bridges, separated from the Pearl Tower Scenic Area by a hundred
steps from Fuguan Bridge.
Covers an area of 1600 square meters. The name of the garden is out
of the collector’s poem: the stone skin of the stone skin is a stone
book, and my heart is still in my heart. In order to decipher the Bible
and to understand life as the purpose of the exhibition hall, it is called
“Enlightenment Garden”.

9. Chen’s former residence
It is a quaint Qing Dynasty residence, covering an area of 1364 square
meters. The original “filial piety old industry” plaque above the
threshold, there are half pavilions, old homes, hundreds of feet, Hao
Getang and other buildings. There are three rooms in Haogetang.
When the house was completed in 1920, Chen went to see the “Hot
Songs” of Xiangshan. He was pleased to know the name of “Hao Ge
Tang”, which is a meeting place for visitors. “Women’s Ancestral
Temple” and “Huo Ge Tang” are horizontal. “Women’s Ancestral
Temple” is the name of Mr. Sun Yat-sen, who praised Chen’s mother,
Mrs. Ni, who was “study and educated, and became a master”. The
100-foot-floor collection and writing place is very simple on the first
floor. The book “Hundreds of Floors” is the name of this building.
Luo Xingzhou
It is a small island in Tongli Lake, which is a small island in Tongli
Lake. It is a boat ride.

10. Nanyuan Tea House
Located in the southern part of the ancient town, one of the famous
eight scenic spots in the history of the city, “South City Xiaoyan”
scenery, across the river from Chen’s former residence. The first
name is “Fu’an Tea House”, built in the late Qing Dynasty, four open
rooms, traditional brick and wood structure, Qing Dynasty style wood
carving decoration, two floors, with a total area of about 400 square
meters.

11. Chongbentang
It is located in the north of Changqing Bridge in Fuguan Street. It
faces south and faces the water. The southeast is opposite to
Jiayintang across the river, and the west is opposite the Changqiao
Bridge. Qian Qinqin, Tongli, the first year of the Republic of China
(AD 1912) purchased the old house of Gu’s “Western House”, with a
foyer, main hall, front building, back building, kitchen and so on.
Although less than one acre, the building is small, but very compact
and refined.
Jiayintang
Located at the Yujiakoukou of Zhuxing Street, it was built in the 11th
year of the Republic of China (1922), with four entrances and
beautifully carved doors and windows. The homeowner Liu Bingnan,
a native of Beibei, set up an oil workshop before the Luxu, and moved
to Tongli to build a house. He consumed a total of 220,000 silver.
With the poet Liu Yazi the same sect.
The main building is imitation of the Ming Dynasty structure,
commonly known as the “silk hat hall.” Because the beam head
eucalyptus is like the cap of the Ming Dynasty official cap, hence the
name. The courtyard is large and spacious, solemn and solemn. The
center of both sides of the five beams is engraved with the “eight

12. horses”, and the ends of the beams are engraved with “phoenix
wearing peony”. The bottom of the beam is engraved with patterns
such as “satisfaction” and “must be high school”. The “Mao Cap
Wings” (that is, the beam heads of the elm) are engraved with eight
operas, such as the “Ancient City Club, the Three Kingdoms, and the
Lu Bu” in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The image is realistic
and ready to go. This group of openwork is included in the “Chinese
Opera, Suzhou Volume”.
Third bridge
Refers to Taiping Bridge, Geely Bridge and Changqing Bridge. Taiping
Bridge, spanning Dongliu, two lacquer characters, beam type. The
Geely Bridge spans the lacquered characters and two plaques. It is
located in the middle of Taiping Bridge and Changqing Bridge, arched
bridge, and there are bridges on both sides of the bridge. Changqing
Bridge, commonly known as Xiejiaqiao, crosses Dongliu, and two
gongs, the old name Fujian Bridge, also known as Guangli Bridge.

13. Retreat
Built in the 11th to 13th year of the Guangxu reign (1885—1887).
Pavilions, terraces, buildings, pavilions, galleries, squares, bridges,
plaques, halls, halls, houses, and porches are all available. The pool is
the center and the buildings are like floating water.
The inner house is built with two buildings in the north and the south
(the tenth floor and the tenth floor in total). The main name of the
garden is the tower, which is the place where the owner and the
family live. The two floors are connected by the “Walk House”
corridor, with a long window on the north and south, and the bottom
of the fifth floor is hanging down, and the corridors are connected,
elegant and open. There are stairs on both sides of the retreat, and
there is no waterway on rainy days. It can be shaded on sunny days,
and it can be avoided when the main servants go up and down. There
are also a number of rooms under the floor for the waiter to use. The
inner house is the owner of the garden and the treasure is heavy.
Therefore, the Shikumen on both sides of the house are made of clear
water bricks to prevent fire andft. The fire door of the brick and wood
structure is said to be in the Ming and Qing Dynasties buildings in the
same place. Only these two are still the original ones, and all of them
are copied in the near world.

14. Safeguard
The town area is listed in 1 World Cultural Heritage, 3 state-level
cultural relics protection units (Retreat Garden, Lize Girls’ School,
Geng Le Tang), and 2 provincial-level cultural relics protection units
(Tongli Town, Chen’s former residence); There are 16 municipal-level
cultural relics protection units and 13 municipal-level cultural control
units. The third cultural relics survey found 82 unmovable cultural
relics and disappeared into 8 places.
Three international forums, such as the “Chinese-English Heritage
Protection Forum”, the “World Cultural Heritage Education Base
Seminar” and the “Protection and Development of Ancient Towns”,
have been held in Tongli, and the “Tongli Model” of ancient town
protection and utilization has been caused. The attention of experts at
home and abroad has become a case of their academic discussions.
“As an important window for international exchanges, the concept of
ancient town protection in Tongli and the human feelings behind the
protection of ancient towns are worth learning from,” said Mark.
There are many cultural relics in Tongli Ancient Town. The well-
preserved Ming and Qing Dynasties buildings amount to 65,000
square meters, accounting for 61% of the total construction area. In
the late 1970s, Tongli initiated the protection of cultural heritage. The
town first started to understand the family, invited Tongji University
and relevant experts from the provincial and municipal construction
and cultural departments to conduct a comprehensive and systematic
investigation of the historical blocks, traditional houses and cultural
relics of the town, and to find out the protection of cultural relics. The
status quo, and the establishment of electronic files for dynamic
management.

15. Travel guide
Travel information
Railway
Depart from Shanghai, take the bus at Shanghai Railway Station, the
number of trains is more, the EMU is about half an hour, and the
other trains are 1 to 2 hours. From Nanjing, you can drive to Suzhou
for an hour and a half, and other trains take longer than 2-5 hours. If
you are traveling, it is not recommended. Departing from Hangzhou,
there are fewer trains, it takes two and a half hours, and other trains
are slower. It is best to take a bus.
After arriving at Suzhou Railway Station, take the shuttle bus directly
to Tongli in the train station square, every 20 minutes, the fare is 8
yuan, and the journey is 45 minutes. I played about 80 yuan.
Highway
Shanghai – Tongli
Shanghai to Tongli traffic is very convenient and there are many
choices. You can choose to go directly by car, or you can transfer to
Suzhou to go to Tongli.

16. Direct: Shanghai Hutai Road Bus Terminal: Every day at 1:30 pm,
there is a straight hair in the same car.
Qingpu Bus Station: There are many shifts to Tongli. The last bus to
return to Qingpu at Tongli Bus Station is around 16:00. The city can
take the Huqing Line to Qingpu Bus Station.
Shanghai – Suzhou: Shanghai Hongqiao Airport: Direct air-
conditioned car, 10:00-19:00, every hour, one and a half hours.
Shanghai Bus Station (on the side of the train station): Directly to
Suzhou South Bus Station. One bus every 15 minutes. The journey
takes about 2 hours.
Nanjing – Tongli: You can take the express bus to Suzhou first.
Nanjing Central Gate Bus Terminal: Departs every 30 minutes to
Suzhou South Bus Station for 2 hours.
Hangzhou – Tongli: Hangzhou North Bus Station, 7:50, 10:40, 13:20,
there is a straight hair in the same car, you can also take the high-
speed bus from Hangzhou East Bus Station to Suzhou, every 30
minutes, 2 hours of travel.
Suzhou – Tongli: Suzhou South Bus Station: 10 trains a day, running
water, 35 minutes by car; Suzhou Wuxian Bus Station: every 15
minutes, drive: 35 minutes. Suzhou Railway Station Square: every 20
minutes, drive: 45 minutes.
Zhouzhuang – Tongli: There are two ways to go from Zhouzhuang to
Tongli. The waterway sees the same water transport below.
Land: The west side of Zhouzhuang has a minibus to Tongli, which
can be reached in half an hour. The Jubao Bridge in the west of
Zhouzhuang comes out about 300 meters west. There is a long-
distance crossing station on the road, going to Tongli. Long-distance
cars pass here, every half hour (usually no car after 5 or 6 o’clock in
the afternoon).
Ancient town honor
On November 17, 2017, Tongli Ancient Town was awarded the top ten
ancient villages and towns that were most popular among netizens in
2017.
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