Summary
It is the largest and best preserved private mansion in Nanjing
City. Now it has been turned into a museum exhibiting traditional
daily life and handicrafts of Nanjing City.
Introduction
Nanjing Folk Museum was the former residence of Ganxi, a famous
scholar of the Qing Dynasty (1636-1911). It is also called “Gan
Family Mansion”. It is regarded as one of the three major sites of
the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing dynasty in Nanjing, together with
Ming Mausoleum and Ming Dynasty City Wall.
The mansion covers an area of about 10,000 square meters, and has
over 300 rooms. There are mainly two important aspects that this
mansion contributes to the local art and culture. Firstly, the
large mansion is of great artist value in researching China’s
classic architecture. Secondly, there is a large collection of
precious ancient books at Jindailou (Jindai Building) in this
mansion, all provide important data for researching the ancient
folk culture.
Gan Family Mansion also served as a spreading and publicizing
center of Kunqu Opera, because the offsprings of the Gan Family are
very fond of this opera and made intense research and study on this
subject.
The layout, décor and furniture are well preserved. In addition,
some statues and wares are placed there in order to exhibit the
daily life and folk customs of Nanjing City in the past. Various
traditional handicrafts such as Chinese puppet shoes, clay
figurines and paper cuttings are also exhibited in the museum. Some
professional craftsmen are also available on site to show how these
handicrafts are made. Buy paying a small fee, visitors can also
learn the techniques there.
Travel Essentials
- Address: 15-19 Nanputing, Jianye District (建邺区南捕厅15-19号)
- Opening hours: 09:00-17:00, daily
- Transport: Visitors can take public bus No 35, 38 or 100 and get
off at Shengzhou Road Station.
Related Links
- Chinese Architecture
- Introduction of China’s history
- Introduction of Chinese Culture
- Customize a Nanjing tour
