Mandarin's House
Mandarin's House (Chinese: 鄭家大屋; Portuguese: Casa do Mandarim) is a historic residential complex in São Lourenço, Macau. It was the residence and family home of the late Qing theoretician and reformist Zheng Guanying (1842-1921). He completed his masterpiece of Shengshi Weiyan (Words of Warning in Times of Prosperity) in the house. Mandarin's House occupies an area of 4,000 square metres (43,000 sq ft), which is amongst the largest family houses in Macau.[3]
| Mandarin's House Casa do Mandarim | |
|---|---|
鄭家大屋 | |
 | |
| |
| General information | |
| Address | No.10 Travessa de Antonio da Silva, Largo do Lilau, São Lourenço, Macau[1] |
| Country | Macau |
| Completed | 1869 |
| Renovated | 2002-2010[2] |
| Owner | Zheng Guanying's Family (formerly) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 2 |
| Other information | |
| Number of rooms | more than 60 |
| Mandarin's House | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese name | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 鄭家大屋 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 郑家大屋 | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
| Portuguese name | |||||||||||
| Portuguese | Casa do Mandarim | ||||||||||
History
Mandarin's House was built in 1869 (Eighth year of the reign of Emperor Tongzhi) by Zheng Guanyin's father Zheng Wenrui. Zheng Guanying and his brothers gradually enlarged the complex since. It was built largely in Cantonese style but is noted for its fusion of western architectural elements.
In 1990s, the Zheng family gradually moved out and the house was then rented out. There were at once more than 300 tenants living inside the complex, resulting in poor living conditions.
The house was 4,000 square meters. The house was badly damaged because of a fire, and it took 8 years to fix the house.
The government overtook the complex in 2001. In 2005, the house was listed as part of the Historic Centre of Macau, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
See also
- List of oldest buildings and structures in Macau
