Another popular type of Hakka Earth Building, the Five-Pheonix Earth Building(Wu
Fong Lou), has been built according to the ancient Central-Plain culture. Five-Pheonix
Building has the following characteristics:
1. It has a central axis with central hall,
2. At least one upper and one lower halls;
3. Left-right balanced cross rooms(houses);
4. In front of the house, it has a large field and pond;
5. The front houses are lower and the back houses are higher from ground level.
There are about over 2,000 Five-Pheonix buildings in Shang Hang county(Western
Fukien), over 1,000 buildings in each of the other Western Fukien counties: Yong
Ting, Wu Ping, Ning Hua, Lian Chen, Ching Liew and Charng Ting. Across Kwangtung
province, there are altogether more than 10,000 Five Pheonix Buildings, with majority
in Estern Kwangtung. All together, it is estimated that there are 20,000 Five
Pheonix Buildings, more than 4 times the Round Earth Building.
Five Pheonix represent five different types of "birds" in five different
colors: Pink(Pheonix), Yellow, Green, Purple, and White. It also represent the
North, East, South, West and Central section, thus the name Five-Pheonix.
There are variety of variation based on the pattern indicated above, three-hall
pattern, two-hall and one cross pattern, three-hall and two cross pattern, three-hall
and two cross plus the "surround dragon" in the back, nine hall and
two cross pattern etc. all based on the central axis.
The largest is the nine-hall type. In the same central axis, it composed of three
Five-Pheonix Buildings, it is usually for the clans that has about 500-700 years
of settlement history in the area. The last Five-Pheonix Building is called the
Back Building(Ho Lou), the three central halls in the central axis are called
Upper, Central and Lower Room(Ting); There is a field or open sky loft between
the last Five-Pheonix Building(Ho Lou) and the second Five-Pheonix Building which
is overall about one step lower in level than the Ho Lou. This second Five-Pheonix
Building is called Central Tang, and then across another field or open sky loft,
yet another step lower in level, is the Lower Tang. Thus we have three independent
Five-Pheonix Building, yet on the same axis line, it has three levels of ground
height, nine halls(three in each building), aligned in the same axis line.
The most popular variation is the three tang and two cross pattern. The back tang
and left-right rooms are usually of two-storey. In front of the building is a
half-round pond, the diameter side of the pond is in parallel with the front building.
Between the pond and the building is a field.
Entering the front door, you are in the Lower Ting. The Lower Ting is of rectangular
shape where the depth is much shorter than the width. On the left and right of
Lower Ting there is one room each, the doors of the rooms open to face the lower
Ting. Between the Lower Ting and the Central Ting Tang is an open sky loft. There
are also left and right smaller Ting between the Lower Ting and Central Ting.
Thus the four Tings shares the same open sky loft and each Ting could see the
other three Tings. You have 4 independent Tings of differrent sizes and yet still
form an integrated structure with one another. Each Ting is used for different
purpose.
As you enter Central Ting from Lower Ting, after passing through two smaller Side
Tings, the level is up half a step to show it is at higher level. The depth of
the Central Ting Tang is about twice the depth of Lower Ting, thus Central Ting
Tang is quite larger than the Lower Ting. In the Upper Ting, you have buildings
of two levels. All the rooms window open to the hallways or open sky loft, and
thus face the central axis line.
The Five-Pheonix Building is usually built facing a river and on a slope. At the
back of the building, there is usually a vegetable garden. The front pond is use