Tang Ancestral Hall [c.1300- ]

Notes from AMO:

Tang Ancestral Hall

Situated between Hang Tau Tsuen and Hang Mei Tsuen and surrounded by the three Wais (walled villages) and six Tsuens (villages), the Tang Ancestral Hall is the main ancestral hall of the Tang Clan that has resided in the area all these years. According to clan records, the ancestral hall was constructed by Tang Fung-shun of the clan’s 5th generation about 700 years ago. The Tang Ancestral Hall underwent a major restoration funded by the clan between 1990 and 1991. As in the past, the ancestral hall is still used regularly as a venue for worship, festivals and ceremonies, and clan meetings. The Tang Ancestral Hall was declared a monument in December 2001.

A magnificent three-hall structure with two internal courtyards, the Tang Ancestral Hall is one of the finest examples of its kind in Hong Kong. It is fronted by two drum platforms with two columns on each platform supporting the roof, an inner column made of granite and an outer column of red sandstone. The elevated red sandstone pathway in the front courtyard suggests that at some time in the past, one of the Tang clansmen held a high-ranking position in the imperial government. The wooden brackets and beams of the three halls are elegantly carved with auspicious Chinese motifs. The main ridges and roofs are decorated with fine Shiwan dragon-fish and lion ceramic figures. Ancestral tablets are displayed on the altar in the rear hall.

Opening Hours:
9 am to 1 pm and 2 pm to 5 pm daily
Closed on the first three days of the Chinese New Year

__________________________________________________________________

The hall was used for the meeting of Governor Sir Henry Blake and the gentry and elders of the New Territories communities on the 4 August 1899.