Quanzhou Bell Tower is located at the intersection of Zhongshan Road and East and West Streets in Quanzhou, construction began in 1934 and was completed the following year. The bell tower is 13.8 meters high and was designed by a British designer with a European style. Quanzhou Bell Tower is an important symbol of the ancient city and one of the important transportation buildings in Quanzhou City.
The bell tower is located in the center of Quanzhou city, close to the thousand-year-old temple Kaiyuan Temple, and the east and west pagodas are far away, weiyuan tower, bell tower, east and west towers, constitute a unique artistic conception! (Photo by Guo Xiaobin and Chen Xiaojun)
Quanzhou Bell Tower is located at the intersection of Quanzhou Zhongshan Road and East and West Streets, construction began in 1934 and was completed the following year. The bell tower is 13.8 meters high and was designed by a British designer with a European style. Quanzhou Bell Tower is an important symbol of the ancient city and one of the important transportation buildings in Quanzhou City. In the past 40 years of reform and opening up, the ancient city of Quanzhou has been full of vitality, and the bell tower and surrounding buildings and business circles have changed. Nowadays, the Xinhuadu Mall next to the Bell Tower, formerly the Bell Tower Department Store, was the most fashionable shopping mall in Quanzhou in the 80s, and the opening day was just the National Day, and the flow of people was three floors inside and three floors outside. Not far away, the Quanzhou Film Theater just released the comedy movie "He and Them", which was also full of audiences. The Quanzhou Hotel (later renamed the Bell Tower Hotel) under the Bell Tower was full of guests, and the Bell Tower business circle began to really take shape at that time. In the following years, Chinese and foreign restaurants such as Haitian Restaurant and Pizza Hut have been stationed. Later, the Bell Tower Department Store was replaced by Fuhua Shopping Center and Xinhuadu, and the Quanzhou Hotel was demolished and converted into an arcade-style building with more shops. Over the years, the bell tower has witnessed the butterfly changes and prosperity of the old city business district.
The theory of when and who built the bell tower varies: one is that it was built by Kuomintang brigade commander Chen Guohui in 1930; the other is a legend about a weak woman in society rebelling against evil forces. It is said that in 1934, Shen Fazao, a brigade commander of a certain unit of the Kuomintang garrison, wanted to marry a young aunt. Zhang Si, the governor of Jinjiang County (when the county was in Quanzhou), was stingy and looked for a female nurse surnamed Huang at the Quanzhou Health Center. Unexpectedly, Nurse Huang resolutely refused, and finally hanged herself. At that time, this incident had a great response in the society, causing public indignation from all walks of life. In order to safeguard justice, teachers and students of Liming High School joined hands with the Quanzhou Women's Association, Teachers and Students of Peiyuan Middle School and Peiying Girls' Middle School to march and demonstrate in the streets. In order to ease the situation, Zhang Sishi took the initiative to negotiate with the student representative Lin Shiqing and others, and finally agreed to build a bell tower to commemorate the heroine of this social tragedy, which is also the reason why the bell tower looks like a graceful girl.
The picture shows the bell tower in the 1950s, which is also the earliest photograph of the bell tower so far. (Photo courtesy of Quanzhou Urban Construction Archives)
This photograph of the bell tower in the 1970s shows a clear view of the nearby Sennam Church. The sports street teams came from south to north, and the two sides of the road were crowded with onlookers.
This photograph was taken in the 1980s, when the area around the bell tower had not yet been renovated, with the Post and Telecommunications Office in front of it on the left and the Wujiao Company in the back.
In 1986, this photograph was taken of the bell tower and the demolished Quanzhou Hotel from south to north. The bell tower is an important geographical indication of the ancient city, where the east-west streets and the north-south road are demarcated.
The upper part of the bell tower has a circular clock covered with glass on four sides and a weather vane, and the middle resembles a first-floor pavilion with windows on all four sides. A circular abutment is placed on the ground floor, supported by four columns. The structure of the whole building is simple, the lines are clear, there is no majestic momentum, there is no carved beams and paintings, and there is no golden splendor, and the appearance looks very ordinary.
The bell tower in the picture was taken before the renovation around the bell tower. The bell tower protection range line is 80 meters along the east street direction, 80 meters along the west street direction, and 80 meters each along the north and south directions of Zhongshan Road. The protection measures stipulate that the original appearance, structural system and important interior decoration of the building shall not be changed.
The picture shows the photography enthusiast Cai Qi presenting the night view of the Bell Tower taken during the Lantern Festival in 1984.
In 2008, the Quanzhou Bell Tower appeared on the cover of the magazine "China Vision" published in Japan, becoming the city card of Quanzhou, the starting point of the Maritime Silk Road. The author of the photo of the bell tower on the cover of the magazine, Quanzhou photographer Chen Zixuan, said that he climbed the high place at the junction of Zhongshan Road and West Street in the central city of Quanzhou and took a number of photos of the bell tower. After strict screening, the Japanese side finally selected this photo containing the bell tower and condensing the characteristic architectural elements of southern Fujian such as the Arcade Tower and the Red Tile Roof as the cover photo.
The clock on the bell tower is called the standard clock by the old Quanzhou because of the accurate time. In the past, watches were not very popular, and many citizens would habitually look up at the time when passing the bell tower; citizens wearing watches would also involuntarily stop at the right time. Nearby old people said that the clock here was once the only public clock in Quanzhou.
Small window on the bell tower. (Photo by Shi Yong)
This is a photograph taken from scaffolding around 2000 during the repair of the bell tower, when some of the buildings on Zhongshan North Road had not yet been demolished. (Photo by Lin Shuikun)
The internal structure of the bell tower and the aging of the instruments bear witness to the changes of the years. (Photo by Suvis)
This hammer used to be used to retract the stairs. (Photo by Zhuang Lixiang)
Looking at the four clock faces from the inside, it is a lot of fun. (Photo by Zhuang Lixiang)
Good view of Zhongshan Road outside the window on the second floor of the Bell Tower. (Photo by Zhuang Lixiang)
In order to ensure the normal operation of the bell tower, the municipal department specially designated personnel to regularly inspect the bell tower. The picture shows the municipal staff regularly maintaining and overhauling the night view lighting project of the bell tower. (Photo by Suvis)
Overlooking the bell tower. This is the meeting point of a city, and those who come from the south to the north and those who go west to the east will pass by here. As it is the meeting point of the city, the commercial atmosphere is particularly strong. (Photography by Chen Yingjie)
Built more than 80 years ago, the bell tower has been renovated, and now its functions are still intact, which is convenient for citizens to live and has gradually become a landmark building in the city. (Photo by Chen Qituo)
Now the clock of the bell tower has been replaced by a mechanical clock with a quartz clock, and energy-saving lamps have been installed. The bell tower at night is dazzling and eye-catching. (Photo by Chen Zhifu)
From the Bell Tower House to shoot Zhongshan North Road, you can see Quanzhou Qingyuan Mountain. (Photo by Suvis)