Ten people use the same line

Protect the roots of history and inherit the soul of culture

Shaoxing is one of the first batch of Chinese historical and cultural cities named by the State Council in 1982. It has a long historical urban context, Jiangnan characteristic water town scenery, The starry celebrity culture, unique folk culture and hard-working humanistic spirit are among the 7 types of the existing 103 famous historical and cultural cities in China, which combine ancient capitals

, landscapes and traditions. Three cultural types, including architectural style, enjoy the reputation of "Shaoxing for Jiangnan style, Shaoxing for Jiangnan ancient city, and Shaoxing for Jiangnan culture".

In recent years, Shaoxing City, guided by the Scientific Outlook on Development, regards the protection of famous cities as a historical responsibility and historical pursuit, deeply implements the "Shaoxing Historical and Cultural Cities Protection Plan", and comprehensively strengthens the protection and protection of famous historical and cultural cities. Utilization has achieved a win-win situation between the protection of famous cities and economic, social and urban development. Professor Ruan Yisan, director of the National Research Center for Historical and Cultural Cities and doctoral supervisor at Tongji University, said, "Shaoxing has created valuable experience in the protection of famous cities and explored effective ways to harmonize protection and utilization."

1. Basic practices

Protecting historical and cultural cities is a major issue. We insist on starting from reality, exploring in practice, and innovating in exploration, and have found a way to protect the ancient city with Shaoxing characteristics.

1. In terms of the focus of ancient city protection, the four aspects of historical relics, historical districts, ancient city style, and intangible culture should be highlighted. The first is to protect historical relics. A comprehensive survey of ancient buildings, ancient ruins, ancient gardens, memorial sites for outstanding figures, etc. in the city was conducted to determine 102 key cultural relics protection units at all levels based on historical, scientific, and artistic values, and to protect 83 unannounced cultural relics. The immovable cultural relics of the unit shall be registered and protected in accordance with the requirements for cultural relics protection. The second is to repair historical districts. Protect historical areas with real historical relics, complete historical features, and a certain architectural scale as historical districts. Five large historical blocks including Yuezicheng, Lu Xun's Hometown, Baziqiao, Xixiaohe, Shusheng's Hometown and two small historical blocks of Shijing and Xinhe Lane have been designated for key protection and restoration, with a total area of ??nearly 2 million square meters. The third is to continue the style of the ancient city. Focus on maintaining and continuing the spatial pattern of the ancient city, including the ancient city’s plane layout, azimuth axis, road skeleton, and river network; protecting and continuing the natural environment of the ancient city, including the important topography and wilderness features of the city and its suburbs; protecting and continuing the architectural style of the ancient city , including architectural style, volume, height, materials, colors, patterns, etc. The fourth is to inherit intangible culture. Efforts should be made to excavate and protect intangible cultural heritage such as culture and art, folk crafts, folk customs and customs with local characteristics, so that they can complement each other with tangible culture and jointly constitute the city's historical and cultural heritage.

2. In terms of the idea of ??ancient city protection, we should combine key protection, reasonable retention, local transformation and general improvement. The first is key protection. The precious historical and cultural heritage listed in the cultural protection units shall be the main objects of rescue and protection in order to preserve the important nodes of the historical context. For example, a total investment of more than 1 billion yuan will be focused on the protection of Lu Xun's former residence and its surrounding environment, which is a national cultural relic protection unit. The scope of protection will be expanded from "former residence" to "hometown", and the protected area will be expanded from 14 hectares to 52 hectares. The second is reasonable reservation. Buildings with Shaoxing characteristics and more typical religious buildings, Taimen neighborhoods, Shiqiao ancient temples, river docks, bluestone slabs, etc. should be reasonably preserved to reflect the cultural personality of the ancient city. For example, when protecting and repairing Cangqiao Zhi Street, Xi Xiaohe and other blocks, more than 70 platform gates were designated as first-class and second-class protected platforms for restoration and preservation, showing the traditional architecture of "small gates outside and big world inside" culture. The third is partial transformation. Renovate and renovate buildings that are incompatible with the style of the historical district, and implement underground transformation of various pipelines that affect the view to reflect the coordination of the overall style of the ancient city. For example, more than 600 buildings on both sides of historical districts, main thoroughfares in the city, and waterside style belts have been renovated with building facades, using "old and new" walls, "Singapore" roofs, and "black, gray and white" colors. The fourth is general improvement. It means focusing on improving the living conditions of residents and carefully building and improving the infrastructure in the ancient city to meet the needs of modern life.

3. In terms of the timing of ancient city protection, we should adhere to the "point" as the basis, the "line" as the link, the "surface" as the breakthrough, and the "whole city" protection as the ultimate goal. The first is based on the protection of “points”. It is to protect various cultural relics protection units and cultural preservation sites, so that the cultural relics units from the late Neolithic Age to modern times can be better preserved within the ancient city. In recent years, Wang Xizhi’s former residence, Cai Yuanpei’s former residence, and Datong Academy have been restored, the second phase of Shen Garden, Zhou Enlai’s ancestral residence (memorial hall) have been expanded, Zhou Enlai Square has been built, and the He Mi Supervisor Temple has been rebuilt. By strengthening the protection of "points", the second is to use the protection of "lines" as a link. It is to protect the rivers and lakes system and historical streets composed of "three verticals, two rings, six lines, eight ponds, and one hundred and sixty-eight bridges" within the scope of the ancient city, and to connect the cultural relics and historic sites along the rivers, lakes and historical streets. From the overall pattern, it lays the foundation for the implementation of "city-wide" protection. 1.2 billion yuan was invested to renovate and renovate the 12-kilometer-long Huancheng River. The Huancheng River has become an urban landscape belt integrating flood control, environmental protection, urban construction, tourism, and culture, and won the China Human Settlements Environment Model Award. The third is to use the protection of "face" as a breakthrough. It is to protect 7 historical blocks with a total area of ??nearly 2 million square meters determined in the plan, which not only consolidates the protection of cultural relics and historic sites, but also fundamentally solves the problem of coordinating the surrounding features of cultural relics and historic sites. The "Implementation Measures for the Protection of Shaoxing Historic Blocks" was specially promulgated, and 1.1 billion yuan was invested to protect and repair 7 historical blocks through six methods: protection, repair, restoration, retention, rectification, and renewal. So far, more than 800,000 square meters have been repaired, involving more than 5,000 households. The fourth is to take the protection of the “whole city” as the ultimate goal. It is to combine the protection of "points", "lines" and "areas" with the protection of the ancient city pattern and traditional features, so that the protection space is expanded to the entire ancient city of 8.32 square kilometers, and the isolated "cultural relic trees" are connected into pieces to create a The original ecological "cultural relic forest" reflects the integrity of the protection of the ancient city. The focus is to protect and continue the water city pattern formed before the Tang Dynasty and the street pattern established in the Song Dynasty, maintain the characteristics of the traditional water system, and continue the traditional charm of alleys and alleys; protect and continue the spatial form of the ancient city, with the three urban areas of Fushan, Tashan, and Jishan A hill is the commanding height, and the height of the new batch of buildings is controlled below 24 meters to ensure the transparency of the ancient city's spatial outline and view corridor; protect and continue the traditional style of the ancient city, maintain the living environment of people's small bridges and flowing water, and reflect the whitewashed walls and black awning boats. The architectural style of bluestone slabs on the tile roof.

4. In the way of protecting the ancient city, we should emphasize the unity of historical authenticity, integrity of style, continuity of life and integration of humanities and nature. One is to show historical authenticity. Protect as many authentic historical relics as possible. Even when it comes to the maintenance and repair of historical buildings and historical relics, we must "repair the old to preserve its authenticity." For example, in the restoration of dilapidated residential houses in the Baziqiao historical district, 60% of the ancient buildings in the entire block of more than 160,000 square meters have been preserved, and 34.8% have been "renovated as old" and consistent with the overall style. The second is to present the integrity of the style. Adhere to showing the characteristics of a certain historical period of the city in an overall coordinated style and reflecting the historical context of the city. In the old city, three hills are used as the commanding heights. According to the environmental conditions of different areas, the height of new buildings is strictly controlled, and the architectural color tone of "black, gray, and white" is gradually restored to promote the return of national style. In the construction control zone of cultural relics protection units, it is prohibited to build buildings whose form, height, volume, and color are inconsistent with the cultural relics protection units, so as to make the environment of the entire ancient city harmonious, neat, and beautiful. The third is to reflect the continuity of life. During the protection of the ancient city, except for one-fifth of the residents who were relocated or evacuated due to excessive population density, the rest of the residents lived in the old city. At the same time, the vacated space was used to improve the living environment of residents, and added handicraft workshops, commercial and cultural facilities, and operated Shaoxing traditional handicrafts, local specialties, hotels, and teahouses, making people deeply feel that this is a living and full of times. A breathtaking cultural city. The fourth is to show the integration of humanities and nature. The two major advantages of cultural landscape and natural landscape are superimposed to further highlight Shaoxing's "humanistic, ecological and livable" characteristics.

The original features of Fushan, Tashan, and Jishan in the urban area were protected, and the Feiyi Tower, Yingtian Tower, and Wenbi Tower were rebuilt and restored on the mountains, creating a unique landscape of a city in the mountains and a city in the mountains. Strengthen the planning, protection and utilization of the urban water system, and vigorously improve the water environment, so that the urban water system is smooth and clear water flows, maintaining the water city characteristics of Shaoxing's "Oriental Venice". In combination with cultural relics and tourist routes, we will expand, sow and enhance greenery, creating an urban landscape in which “man and nature are integrated, water and green are dependent on each other, and the city and garden are integrated”.

2. Main achievements

The protection of ancient cities is also a major and rewarding project. Through persistent, solid and effective ancient city protection work, we have achieved good cultural, economic and social effects, and have effectively promoted the construction of Shaoxing into a strong economic city, a strong cultural city, an ecological Shaoxing and a harmonious Shaoxing.

1. It inherits historical civilization and demonstrates the vitality of historical culture. In particular, the 7 historical blocks that have been restored and protected display the characteristics of a certain historical period of the city with an overall coordinated environmental style, and are full of strong cultural atmosphere. For example, the restored Cangqiao Street won the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Regional Cultural Heritage Protection Excellence Award in 2003. Experts from the jury believe that “Cangqiao Zhi Street has successfully demonstrated the vitality of Shaoxing’s historical and cultural city and has become a living and vibrant display place of Chinese heritage.”

2. It expands urban functions and enhances the city’s comprehensive competitiveness. With the advancement of ancient city protection work, urban infrastructure has been continuously improved, which has effectively expanded the city's residential, leisure, cultural, tourism, commerce and other functions, and enhanced the city's comprehensive competitiveness. Festivals and events such as the Public Memorial to the Tomb of Dayu, the Lu Xun Culture and Art Festival, the International Orchid Pavilion Calligraphy Festival, the Water Village Customs Tourism Festival, and the Chinese Yue Opera Festival have also effectively expanded Shaoxing’s foreign exchanges and cooperation and established an important platform for economic development. Shaoxing City has been successively rated as China's Excellent Tourism City, the Best Chinese Charming City, and the Best Commercial City in Mainland China. It ranks 29th among the top 50 competitive cities in China. The comprehensive strength of the central city ranks 41st in the country. Zhejiang 3rd place in the province.

3. Optimize the living environment and improve the quality of life of residents. During the process of protecting the ancient city, residential buildings along the streets were renovated, municipal facilities were improved, and supporting service facilities were added. The urban environment was significantly improved, and the quality of residents' lives continued to improve. In recent years, Shaoxing City has successively won the titles of China Environmental Protection Model City, National Sanitary City, National Garden City, and National Advanced City for Creating Civilized Cities. It ranks among the top 500 cities in Zhejiang Province in the quantitative assessment of comprehensive environmental management in the country announced by the State Environmental Protection Administration. First, the quality of life of urban residents ranks 18th in the country.

4. It promotes the urbanization process and promotes the sustainable development of cities. In order to effectively protect the ancient city, the incremental part of urban development is moved outside the ancient city, which makes room for the protection of the ancient city and effectively promotes the urbanization process. In recent years, in accordance with the "Shaoxing Big City Development Strategy Outline", the urban development strategic orientation of "city expansion to the north, tourism to the south, development along the river, and multi-directional expansion" has been implemented, adhering to group development, Yuecheng, Keqiao, Paojiang, The construction of Jiangbin and Jinghu New Districts has been steadily advanced. Didang New City, a comprehensive new commercial city with a planned area of ??5.7 square kilometers, has been developed and constructed. The built-up area has expanded from 31.9 square kilometers at the end of the "Ninth Five-Year Plan" to 75 square kilometers, accelerating the development of Shaoxing City. The development process is moving from the "Shanhui Era" to the "Jianhu Era" and the "Hangzhou Bay Era".

3. Some thoughts

The protection of ancient cities is a worldwide problem. The practice and exploration of the protection of the ancient city of Shaoxing provides a model for the protection of historical and cultural cities and also leaves us with a lot of inspiration.

1. We must adhere to the principle of the rule of law, achieve scientific planning, and manage in accordance with the law. The protection of ancient cities must be integrated into the rule of law, following and implementing the spirit and requirements of UNESCO’s Convention for the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage, my country’s newly revised Cultural Relics Law, and the State Council’s Notice on Strengthening the Protection of Cultural Heritage. The protection of the ancient city in Shaoxing began in the 1980s. The ancient city protection plan has gone through three rounds of revisions, with consistent guiding ideology and continuous improvement of ideas.

We organically combine the inheritance of historical culture with the demonstration of modern civilization, and actively build modern iconic cultural facilities such as Shaoxing Grand Theater, Lu Xun Film City, Shaoxing Opera Art Center, China Yellow Wine City, Shaoxing Mingxian Museum, Yuewang City, China Lanting Calligraphy Art Institute, etc. , created a number of cultural masterpieces such as "Dayu Controlling the Floods", "True and False Wukong", "King Goujian of Yue", etc., which enriched the ancient city with cultural elements rich in the flavor of the times. We must persist in developing spatial innovation. The most practical problem faced by historical and cultural cities is how to adjust urban planning and layout in a timely manner, avoid historical urban areas, and develop and construct in a wider space, so as to achieve the mutual complementarity of historical city protection and new city development. In recent years, we have thoroughly implemented the "Shaoxing Big City Development Strategy Outline", adhered to urban group development, transferred the incremental part of urban development to other places, and "jumped out of the ancient city to protect the ancient city", so that the original functional burden of the ancient city can be reduced , the excessive traffic pressure can be alleviated, and the excessive environmental pressure can be relaxed, creating good conditions for "making the ancient city refined".