The cultural traditions of the front-line island of Kinmen, lying just off the China mainland, have been enriched by a newly opened folk arts village. The ornately engraved and decorated pillars, walls and windows, and the sparrow-tail eaves of the buildings in the village recapture the mood of China's classical era.

The Kinmen County Government appropriated US$300,000 to reconstruct and repair 16 residence, a temple and a school belonging to the Wang family to form the basis of the folk arts village. Since the buildings were originally erected by the masons of Fukien province at the turn of the century, they had become weather-beaten and damaged by enemy shells.

Kinmen was first settled in the Tsing dynasty by people seeking to escape the invasion of the northern barbarians. The island was opened up in the Tang dynasty and culturally developed in the Sung dynasty. Though it has a land area of only 148 square kilometers, Kinmen has long been regarded as a stronghold to be fought for by military strategists. Cheng Cheng-kung or Koxinga used it as a base to recover Taiwan from the Dutch. Consequently, when the government of the Republic of China moved its seat to Taiwan, the late President Chiang Kai-shek showed his determination to hold Kinmen and Matsu by winning decisively the "Kuningtou" and "August 23" battles. He said: "Without Kinmen and Matsu, there will be no Taiwan and Penghu. With Taiwan and Penghu in our hands, we will some day recover the Chinese mainland." Today, Kinmen is not only a stable and strong military bastion, but also a prosperous model county based on the Three Principles of the People.

Realizing that the maintenance and preservation of the cultural assets of the ancestors are closely related to the development of national culture and ethics, the Kinmen County Government recently made the decision to rebuild the Wang village into a folk arts museum. In addition to repairing dilapidated parts of the village, the government added stone walls and a gate, opened gardens and collected cultural and folk artifacts for public display.

The 18 old houses are divided into five categories: official residences, shrines, pavilions, residences and schools. After reconstruction, seven of the houses now contain traditional folk artifacts, sacrificial and ceremonial items and martial arts and recreational equipment. Under the government's supervision, the remaining 11 buildings are used by the Wangs as classical teahouses and souvenir stores.

The folk arts exhibition hall was originally a village school. Its exhibits include masterpieces made of porcelain, pottery, bronze and lacquerware. The original facilities at the school are preserved, with such items as classics and writing materials displayed in the classroom.

The sacrificial hall houses effects associated with ancestor worship. The ceremonial hall, using a traditional wedding ceremony as its motif, comprises a main hall, nuptial chamber, rooms for the bride's and bridegroom's relatives and the sedan.

The products hall exhibits agricultural and fishery tools, spinning wheels, sugar and oil manufacturing equipment, all vividly reflecting the conscientious and diligent spirit of former times. The martial arts hall contains a practice area and weapons used in traditional kung fu and calisthenics, while the recreation hall introduces traditional folk customs including tea ceremony, nan kuan, storytelling, chess and Fukienese opera.

Most of the halls are furnished with items contributed by nearby households. The southern Fukien style of residence is featured by a main central hall, furnished with two credence tables, the upper one holding the ancestors' tablets. Paintings and sculptures of the Buddha and several deities decorate the room. Usually, eight tai shih (great master) chairs and four tables are placed along the two sides of the main hall, next to which on both sides are bedrooms, kitchens and warehouse, all laid out in U-shape.

People of southern Fukien, traditionally pay great attention to the decoration of the roof, wall and window panes of their houses in the belief that this will bring good luck and ward off evil spirits. The decorations also indicate the status of the householder.

The walls of the village are built mainly of red bricks or large stones in different patterns--turtle shell, pa kua (or eight diagram), and coins. Sometimes, classical Chinese paintings of flowers, birds, figures, and animals or a piece of brush-written calligraphy are incorporated. Lime and clay are used to make relief patterns on the wall, and occasionally, pottery, porcelain and glass fragments form different designs.

The doors are painted in peach and pomegranate patterns, and are laid with the character fu, "blissfulness," in red. There is a pair of pa kua (eight-diagram)-shape bronze door handles on the outside, and a door bolt inside. The doorframe may be in rainbow, gourd, ju-yi (scepter), or flower vase shape, but the door itself is oblong. Couplets are pasted or painted on the doorframe, either written in red on dark ground or gold on a red ground.

Red brick is used to make up a wide variety of window patterns. The wooden window frames are constructed with mortise and tenon, while the roof is sumptuously decorated with small porcelain tiles. Most of the ridge roofs are tilted in sparrow-tail profile, as they traditionally were only on the houses of high-ranking officials or scholars.

In front of every house is a spacious yard for drying rice or other grain crops in the harvest season. Shelves for flower vases and large pottery jugs for raising gold fish and lotus flowers are placed in the courtyard in front of the main hall. Trees and grass are planted inside the stone walls to give a touch of green to the classical layout. Visitors can also ride horses side-saddle from the stable in the village.

In the nuptial chamber, there is a well-maintained antique four-poster bed with a wood canopy and curtains. Drawers and shelves are attached to the bed for handbags, bed quilts, jewelry and money to be placed. The bed frame is decorated with auspicious patterns to give a warm and romantic air.

To watch the sun rise from over the Hai Chu (Sea-Pearl) Hall is considered essential visit to the museum. The hall is so named because as the sun rises, it seems that the sea has given birth to a pearl.

Today, as most of the villagers have gone to Taiwan or foreign countries to pursue their careers, only 56 people remain in the village. They do not feel that their life is disturbed by tourists, since they welcome visitors to appreciate the beauty of Chinese folk art, which illustrates the sturdiness of the pioneers of Chinese settlement on the island.

[Picture Caption]

1. The main gate leading to the folk arts village in the background. 2. Small alleys in Kinmen are paved with stone slabs. The lintels used to decorate walls are composed of pottery fragments. 3. The walls are built from large stones. 4. Banyan trees give shade in a corner of the Kinmen Folk Arts Village.

1. Plants are placed in the courtyard of the building. 2. A residence for high-ranking officials is in the traditional style. It will be opened to the public when it is fully furnished and decorated. 3. This old picture shows Wang Ching-hsiang (fourth from right in the background), the first of the Wangs to start building the village, posing for a picture with Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the national founding father of the Republic of China (fifth from left in front). 4. The horizontal bridge connecting two side rooms of Hai Chu Hall is an idyllic place to watch the sun rise. 5. The sparrow-tail eaves show that the Wangs' ancestors were high-ranking officials. 6. Hai Chu Hall is a private school for the Wang children.

1. The horse-back ridge shows that the ancestors of householders were lower in the social ladder. 2. Two old cannons placed in front of Hai Chu Hall. 3. The well water is slightly tainted with sea water. 4. Antiques exhibited at the Folk Arts Exhibition Hall. 5. Colored pottery fragments are used to decorate walls in Kinmen. 6. Each house is joined with another by similar gates. 7. A girl drawing water from a well.

1. The Wang village laid out uniformly. 2. The large pottery jug was used to raise goldfish and lotus flowers. 3. & 4. Two houses. 5. A window carved from a piece of stone. 6. Decorations for a traditional wedding ceremony hall. 7. The bed and dressing table in the nuptial chamber are in classical style. Shelves and drawers are attached to the bed to place personal belongings.

1. Corn being dried in the courtyard of a house. 2. Sunrise as seen from the Hai Chu Hall. 3. Chen Tien-chai, who is in charge of general affairs at the folk arts village, is a collector of curios and a cultivator of plants. 4. Girls going to work in the morning.

Small alleys in Kinmen are paved with stone slabs. The lintels used to decorate walls are composed of pottery fragments.

The walls are built from large stones.

Banyan trees give shade in a corner of the Kinmen Folk Arts Village.

Plants are placed in the courtyard of the building.

A residence for high-ranking officials is in the traditional style. It will be opened to the public when it is fully furnished and decorated.

This old picture shows Wang Ching-hsiang （fourth from right in the background）, the first of the Wangs to start building the village, posing for a picture with Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the national founding father of the Republic of China （fifth from left in front）.

The horizontal bridge connecting two side rooms of Hai Chu Hall is an idyllic place to watch the sun rise.

The sparrow-tail eaves show that the Wangs' ancestors were high-ranking officials.

Hai Chu Hall is a private school for the Wang children.

The horse-back ridge shows that the ancestors of householders were lower in the social ladder.

Two old cannons placed in front of Hai Chu Hall.

The well water is slightly tainted with sea water.

Antiques exhibited at the Folk Arts Exhibition Hall.

Colored pottery fragments are used to decorate walls in Kinmen.

Each house is joined with another by similar gates.

A girl drawing water from a well.

The Wang village laid out uniformly.

The large pottery jug was used to raise goldfish and lotus flowers.

Two houses.

Two houses.

A window carved from a piece of stone.

Decorations for a traditional wedding ceremony hall.

The bed and dressing table in the nuptial chamber are in classical style. Shelves and drawers are attached to the bed to place personal belongings.

Corn being dried in the courtyard of a house.

Sunrise as seen from the Hai Chu Hall.

Chen Tien-chai, who is in charge of general affairs at the folk arts village, is a collector of curios and a cultivator of plants.

Girls going to work in the morning.