Yuanxin Tian'an Hall Review

On the south bank of Suzhou River and diagonally opposite the Waibaidu Bridge, there is a very western and exquisite Western building complex, the exterior wall is mainly red, supplemented by red-gray or red-yellow stripes, which is very eye-catching. This is the old site of the "New Tianantang" and "Rowing Club", and there are some auxiliary buildings or remnants of buildings next to it. Generally speaking, it is relatively complete. This century-old building complex, compared with the Bund of the world buildings, shooting angle is better grasped, people are less, it is easier to make blockbuster movies.

Xintian'antang is located at No. 107 South Suzhou Road, Huangpu District, central Shanghai, facing the Suzhou River to the north, 33 on the east side, adjacent to the former British Consulate General in Shanghai, and on the west side, adjacent to the north exit of Yuanmingyuan Road and the Zhapu Road Bridge on the Suzhou River. The architect of the new Tianantang was British architect Total, one of the few regular architects in Shanghai who had membership of the Royal Institute of British Architects at the time. His architectural style for the church was Gothic Revival, and a 33-meter clock tower (formerly the commanding height of the Suzhou River) was designed in the middle, with a chapel on both sides of the east and west. The new Tiananmen Church was built in 1886, a famous church of the diaspora in Shanghai, and is a joint chapel of non-British national church members (other than Anglican church members) among the British diaspora. After 1949, the British expatriates withdrew from Shanghai, and the chapel was lent to the Travellers Hall, a Christian church that uses Fuzhou dialect. In 1958, the Christian churches in Shanghai implemented joint worship, concentrating Christians in a few churches. The temple was then incorporated into the joint worship in Huangpu District. The new Tianantang building was confiscated by the people's government, the minarets in the bell tower and the chapel on the west side were demolished, and the bell tower was changed to the office building of the Shanghai lighting fixture factory. The lighting fixture factory divided the interior of the church into three floors. In 2005, the lighting company moved out and the new Tianantang was vacated. At 3 a.m. on January 24, 2007, a fire destroyed the remaining eastern chapel of the new Tianantang, leaving only black debris on the roof. In February 2009, the site of Xintian'antang was razed to the ground, and all the components were removed for "landing overhaul". During the 2010 Shanghai Expo, the reconstruction was completed, and the east side chapel and minarets were rebuilt according to the original drawings. No. 79, South Suzhou Road (Figure 8～ 10) is the original Xintian'an Church Apartment, designed by Bissley Foreign Bank, completed in 1899, with neoclassical style characteristics, once for the dormitory of the clergy of Xintian'an Church.

Standing in the southeast of the Zhapu Road Bridge, the beautiful Oriental Pearl in the distance, the sight is gradually closer, you will be attracted by a Gothic-style old-fashioned building, which is located at the new Tianantang site of 103 South Suzhou Road.

Passing by the source of the Bund, the church must be in sight. Helpless to get in usually, there is a performance during the National Day, buy tickets, enjoy the art, you can visit the interior of the church for the main purpose. To be honest, I am disappointed. I feel that the church has a watch, the inside is not big, the decoration is very simple or even a bit Low, but fortunately there is music. It’s not that I’m dragging and dragging and writing reviews now, but I’m always looking for the way. I can’t leave the National Day holiday in Shanghai, I still have to arrange it well. Fair piety, friends, travel, exhibition, drama, enjoyment, season change is not falling. Busy holiday perfect!

The new Tianantang was designed by Total and imitated the Victorian Roman architecture. The overall plane of the building is a cross structure, with an octagonal spire of 33 meters high in the middle, which was the commanding height of the south bank of Suzhou River at the time of its construction.

In 1849, the British established a consulate at the intersection of the Huangpu River and Suzhou River. In 1886, the new Tianantang was built on the side of the British Consulate. These buildings led to the development of the surrounding area. Since then, the Yuanmingyuan Road and Huqiu Road have developed into a historical complex and historical environment, which is what we now call the "Bund source".