In Erkan, every house belongs to a Chen family. Erkan Village is a village where all people have the same last name, Chen, which is uncommon in Penghu.
There are many traditional buildings in the Erkan Historic Preservation District and houses made of stone bricks and red tiles are everywhere. The ground beneath our feet is traditional stone brick roads instead of asphalt roads.
Chenjia Traditional Residence is situated at the center of the district and the address is No. 6, Erkan Vil., Xiyu Township. Since the owners of the house were the owners of Yuan Yi Drugstore, Ling Chen and Pang Chen brothers, it is also known as Chen Lingbang Memorial Hall. During the Shunzhi Reign of the Qing Dynasty, Yen-Yi Chen from Xiakeng in Kinmen settled down in the village. It has been more than 300 years or seven generations since then. As Yen-Yi Chen had little communication and interaction with outsiders, Erkan Village was developed into an enclosed community with all villagers having the same last name.
Due to the strong northeast monsoon in Penghu, the residence was built in a lowland area. The house is a five-courtyard Minnan building with courtyards connecting the hallway, living room and backroom. The crisscross design of the traditional courtyard compound helps connect indoor and outdoor spaces. A descendant lane with a small arch in front of the main hall enables interaction with neighbors and serves as an exit route.
The walls of Chen Lingbang Memorial Hall are made of local coral stone and basalt to support the roof and are decorated with paintings, colored drawings, koji pottery, colored tiles, clay sculptures and other traditional architectural decorations, fully demonstrating the beauty of the traditional workmanship in Penghu. The memorial hall was registered as a 3rd-class historic site on April 25, 1988.
More importantly, in addition to Minnan architecture, the residence is integrated with a lot of Southeast Asian and Western elements. The descendants still live in the residence, which, as a whole, is a 3rd-class historic site. Visitors can not only see the well-persevered building and antiques but also imagine what life was like in this house at that time.
【Recommended stay time】 1 hour