Suqian Zaohe Ancient Town 宿迁皂河古镇

Zaohe ancient town is located in Suyu District, Suqian City, Jiangsu Province. It is adjacent to Luoma Lake in the north and the old road of the Yellow River in the south. Zaohe ancient town gradually became a market in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasty. It is a “cultural ancient town and water town” with a history of nearly 400 years. The total area of the town is 266 square kilometers, including 219 square kilometers of water area and 32000 mu of cultivated land.There are world cultural heritage sites and national 4A level scenic spots in Zaohe ancient town.

“Zao River” was originally the name of a river, because the soil at the bottom of the water was blackened. In history, many emperors built temples here because of the successive floods of the ancient Yellow River. Emperor Qianlong went to the south of the Yangtze River six times and lived in temples here five times, so it is also called “Qianlong Palace”.

Chenjia courtyard covers a total area of about 6 mu. It is a corridor type building structure in the north, with 66 houses and a building area of about 1500 square meters. It was originally the private residence of Lord Ma of Luoma Lake in Suqian, and then it was sold to Chen Yongmao, a businessman in Shandong Province, until the eve of liberation, so it was called Chenjia courtyard.

Mammon Temple is located in the north of Zaohe Town, Suqian City, with a building area of 650 square meters and a total area of 1500 square meters.People often go to the Mammon Temple to burn incense for wealth, safety and health. Mammon Temple has clear architectural style and rich cultural connotation, which is one of the well preserved temples of Qing Dynasty in Zaohe town.

Heshan hall is located 100 meters to the north of the palace. It was built in the 20th year of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty. The building layout is standard and the building structure is intact. It covers an area of about 12 mu.In the main hall is worshipped the Bodhisattva Guanyin Bodhisattva, and the back hall is dedicated to Shakyamuni.

Since Qing Dynasty, the eighth, ninth and tenth day of the first month in a lunar calendar are the days of temple fair of Dragon King Temple in Anlan of Zaohe, especially the ninth day of the first month, when people are vastly crowded wherever your sight reaches. Therefore, the temple fair of Dragon King in Zaohe is also called “the ninth day of the first month of Zaohe” by the local people.There are many people attending the temple fair on site, which is very lively. Therefore, the temple fair is listed as the first of 36 incense and fire events in Northern Jiangsu.