|
The 750-meter long Liulichang, or Glass Street, got its name from the colored glaze factories built as early as the Yuan dynasty. Since merchants opened the first antique stalls along the street in the Qing dynasty, it has become a commercial area focusing on traditional Chinese culture. If interested in books, antiques, calligraphic works, paintings, art, china, eye-catching jewelry or traditional Chinese ornaments, you should visit Liulichang. When you wander in the almost 100 traditional-style shops on both sides of the street, you will feel away from the bustle of modern life into a Qing bazaar.
In the Ming and Qing dynasties, a lot of candidates to the imperial examinations would visit Liulichang where many book and stationery shops created a strong cultural atmosphere. In the period of the Republic of China, a large number of cultural celebrities got gather to seeking books and treasures. It turned to be a habit of many people. Many celebrities wrote inscriptions for book shops and cultural relic shops, such as He Shaoji, Lu Runku, Kang Youwei, Hua Shikui, Weng Tong, Liang Qichao and Shen Yimo, increasing much more fame for Liulichang.
Liulichang has also won high reputation among writers and artists for the four treasures of study sold here-writing brush, ink stick, paper and ink slab. The famous Yidege, which opened in 1865 (the 4th year of Emperor Tongzhi's reign in the Qing Dynasty), was the first manufacturer of Chinese ink. Daiyuexuan, created in 1916 and named after its creator, makes high-quality writing brushes, which were Qi Baishi's favorite. 
|
