Travel from Home: Lin An Tai Historic House
“Sometimes it makes me wonder how could these people — being surrounded every minute by artful manifestation of wishful thinking — not have been blessed by the so-called higher being”
Dearest readers,
When was your last visit to a mansion that was built over 200 years ago?
On a sunny Saturday afternoon, this writer arrived at the entrance to a historic complex for a private magic show, not knowing that this very venue is just as magical as the performance itself.
Lying to the northeast of Taipei Fine Arts Museum is one of the city’s oldest surviving buildings: the Lin An Tai Historical House. To my surprise, the ground on which I was standing is not where this house was built — its original site is found 6.5 km south of its current location.
Li An Tai Historic House at its original site
Courtesy of Li An Tai Historic House and Museum
History of Li An Tai Historic House
The story goes that in 1754, the Lin family travelled from their hometown in southern China across the strait to settle in Taiwan. After the son, LIN Chin-Neng, accumulated his wealth, he built a family mansion at today’s Siwei Road, just a few steps away from today’s Daan station.
In remembrance of his roots, this private house, which was completed between 1783–1785, was named ‘An Tai’ — with references to Fujian Province’s Anxi County where the family is originated and the Rong Tai company that LIN has established.
More than 200 years old, Lin An Tai Historic House was designed with a 2-partitioned and 5-annex layout; it was built facing southwest — an auspicious orientation according to the laws of feng shiu (Chinese geomancy).
Li An Tai Historic House and Museum in Taipei City
As a result of urban planning that took place in 1978, Lin An Tai house was faced with the destiny of being taken apart. At that time, a group of scholars and experts who were keen in preserving this architecture gem of cultural significance put forward a moving plan, and so the building was relocated to where it stands today.
In 2000, it was opened to the public as Lin An Tai Historic House and Museum. Covering more than four acres of land, this historic complex includes the mansion and an adjoining garden for locals and foreign visitors alike to explore.
Gardenscape at Li An Tai
Upon arrival at the Li An Tai Historic House and Museum, most visitor’s attention would immediately be drawn towards the time-honoured mansion poised behind the gentle Crescent Pond. Rather than heading straight to the building, the writer chose to take the winding path that passes through its adjoining garden designed in classical Chinese style, hoping that the greenery could shelter me from the scorching sun.
The garden, situated southeast of the historic house, is one of the best examples that reflect Chinese ancestors’ view of nature. Contrary to the tradition of western gardening noted for its planted geometry, classical Chinese garden — a microcosm of the universe — is in pursuit of creating unity and harmony between man and nature.
‘Wall of Cloud’ found in the garden of Li An Tai Historic House and Museum
The gardenscape is composed by the essential elements of what makes up a Chinese-style garden: walls, mountains and rocks, water features, plants and colours. The part of the garden near the entrance also includes architectural partition known as ‘Wall of Cloud’. Painted in white, these walls come with doorways in abstract design, from full moons to pomegranate, octagons to flower vase — a common motif that symbolises people’s longing for peace.
These ‘doorways’ not only transport visitors from one space to another but, at the same time, frames the inspiring scenery, luring visitors to take a step further. The landscape changes with every step one takes — this is the magic that lies in classical Chinese garden.
The experience of traversing through this garden reminded the writer of an excerpt titled “A Walk in the Garden” from The Peony Pavilion. In this excerpt, the 16-year old lady Du Li-niang who — forbid to leave her boudoir without permission from her strict parents — sneaked out to the backyard garden one day. Seeing the flowers blooming in a rich variety of colours, the lady becomes sentimental about the beauty and joy of spring, as well as her longing for love.
Garden of Li An Tai Historic House and Museum
The alleviating and soothing sound of the running water from a nearby waterfall made this journey in nature rather immersive. Before crossing the bridge, the writer spotted a small pavilion found at the top of a hill. Tempted to make my way up this rocky hill, I was somewhat disappointed to find out that the entrance was closed. Upon arrival at the footsteps of the pavilions on the other side of the pond, I discovered that these pavilions have been given poetic names, such as, ‘Before the Rain’ ( Yu Qian Lou) and ‘With the Moon’ ( Sui Yue Ge) pavilions.
Inside the Li An Tai Historic House
Similar to many traditional buildings I’ve encountered in southern China, Li An Tai Historic House’s swallow-tailed roof ridges is one of the prominent features found in Fukienese architecture. The swallow-tailed ridges lightens up the somewhat robust construction of the building, adding an air of elegance to the design.
I was surprised to learn afterwards that the front yard of this building is paved with a particular type of red stones; in fact, these stones used to be the ballast stones taken from the bottom of merchant ships travelling from China to Taiwan and served to stabilise the vessel throughout the sea journey. With the advantage of being moss-free and anti-slip, these stones eventually became the ideal pavement material coveted by the wealthy.
Roof top of the Li An Tai Historic House
Li An Tai Historic House is huge and has a total of 34 rooms. The house features some of the finest examples in wood carving, stone carving, as well as paintings.
The writer is particularly drawn to the intricacy of wood carving, which can be seen on the doors, windows, and even the beam structures above. Besides delicate lattice work, there’s also a wide range of vivid depiction of auspicious designs, such as peaches, pomegranates and lychees, symbolising longevity, fertility and good luck, respectively.
Though auspicious motifs do appeal to many Chinese people nowadays, this strong affection for lucky symbols that most, if not all, ancient Chinese people held remains unsurpassed. Traces of these auspicious designs can be found on a myriad of artefacts, including clothing, objects, accessories and even architecture. Sometimes it makes me wonder how could these people — being surrounded every minute by artful manifestation of wishful thinking — not have been blessed by the so-called higher being.
Details of carpentry work inside Li An Tai Historic House
With travel restrictions still in place around the world, the desire for a getaway is greater than ever. With this tale, the writer hopes to recreate that excitement of travel for my kind readers.
At Lin An Tai Historic House’s garden, a new landscape is created with every step we take. This coincides with the view of Marcel Proust when he wrote that “the real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” Following this train of thoughts, being in lockdown may also be the perfect time for us to start looking at the familiars with a different eye, so we can perhaps discover something new.