During the Ming and Qing dynasties, a large number of guilds emerged in China. Despite the exclusivity and local protectionism of these guilds, they played a significant role in protecting their own interests, coordinating business, and dealing with competition among peers. Nanxun, known for its world-renowned Ji Li lake silk, naturally had a silk industry guild, and this guild was no small matter. It was one of the earlier and stronger guilds within the commercial organizations of Nanxun. The Nanxun Silk Industry Guild, initially called the Nanxun Silk Industry Office, was established in the spring of the fourth year of the Tongzhi era (1865), with the purpose of collecting taxes and protecting the interests of silk merchants. In 1916, the silk industry office was renamed the Silk Industry Association, also known as the Silk Industry Guild. The guild hall is called ‘Duan Yi Tang’, a beam-column wooden structure. The roof is a hip-and-gable style, 15 meters high. The front four columns are made of solid rectangular stone slabs, exuding grandeur. The hall is simple and spacious, capable of setting up 54 banquet tables. Every April, the guild holds the Silkworm King Festival here, where hundreds of silk industry practitioners from Nanxun Town gather to worship the silkworm god, pray for a prosperous silk industry, and wish for the silk business to flourish year after year.
Nanxun Ancient Town – Silk Industry Guild (Xunji Branch)
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, a large number of guilds emerged in China. Despite the exclusivi[...]
