Fangs Ancestral Hall

Fang’s Ancestral Hall, first constructed in 1399 (the first year in the reign of Emperor Jianwen of the Ming Dynasty) and reconstructed in 1855 (the fifth year in the reign of Emperor Xian feng of the Qing Dynasty), has a history of more than 600 years. It is said that there are lots of ancient cultural relics in the ancestral hall.

According to historical records, the remote ancestors of the people in Hetian Village inhabited Putian, Fujian Province. In the Tang Dynasty, six brothers, surnamed “Fang”, took part in the imperial examinations during 894-904 and became successful candidates one after another. In 1229, a man named Fang Bangrong moved from Putian to Hetian and became the primogenitor of Hetian. To commemorate the six brothers’ great feat, the later generations in Hetian engraved on the tablets such words as “Liu Gui Liu Fang (All six becoming successful candidates would be remembered forever)” and “Wen Wu Ke Jia (Be superior culturally and militarily)” to encourage their offspring to do better in the future. In 1990, Fang’s Ancestral Hall was put under municipal protection.