Jinxi Ancient Town

Jinxi Ancient Town is located in the southwest of Kunshan City, Jiangsu Province. It is a Jiangnan water town with a history of more than two thousand years and is known as the 'Hometown of Chinese Folk Museums'. The town preserves many cultural landscapes, historical sites, and countless buildings with distinctive features of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Famous attractions include the Tongshen Imperial Courtyard, Chen Fei's Water Tomb, and the Lotus Pond Monastery. Jinxi Ancient Town is dotted with lakes and crisscrossed with rivers and alleys. To the south are the Wubao Lake and Dianshan Lake, and to the northwest is Chen Lake. The town's inner waterways extend for 6 kilometers, creating a typical Jiangnan water town landscape where Jinxi's rivers and lakes are interconnected, the town is surrounded by water, streets and alleys are built along the water, and bridges connect the lanes. Most of the existing residential buildings in Jinxi Ancient Town were built during the Ming, Qing, and Republic of China periods. Most residents built their homes by the water, with the majority of the houses being one or two-story brick-wood structures with grey tiles and white walls, with doors and windows facing the water or with docks built along the water. Two streets along the river form the town's main commercial streets. Chen Fei's Water Tomb is located in the Wubao Lake to the south of Jinxi Town. In the first year of the Song Dynasty's Longxing era (1163), when the Jin troops invaded, Emperor Xiaozong fled south to Lin'an with his court, and during the journey, Consort Chen passed away and was buried in a water tomb, which was rebuilt in 1992. In 1997, it was announced as the second batch of cultural relics protection units in Kunshan City. The Ten-Eyed Long Bridge was built during the Ming Dynasty and, together with the ancient Lotus Pond, Wenxing Pavilion, Long Corridor, and Peach Garden, forms a complete ancient lotus scenic area. The bridge has nine pillars and ten holes, with a total length of 52 meters. Its simple and unique design is rare in the surrounding water towns and is known as the 'Little Treasure Belt Bridge', making it an excellent place for viewing the lake and admiring the moon. During the Mid-Autumn Festival, the place is crowded with visitors leaning on the railings to enjoy the moonlight, where the bright moon in the sky and the water in the lake reflect each other beautifully.