Shunhe Hui District 顺河回族区

History

The district lies within the ruins of the outer wall of Bianzhou (汴州), which Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou (周世宗) had built in 956 using more than 100,000 labourers. Two of the Ming and Qing "Eight Views of Bianjing" (汴京八景) are here: the Iron Pagoda among drifting clouds (铁塔行云) and the autumn sound of the Bian River (汴水秋声). The former Henan Catholic Seminary stands on what the district government identifies as Yichun Yuan (宜春院), the private garden of Zhao Tingmei (赵廷美), younger brother of the first Song emperor.

The present district was set up in May 1953 as a Hui autonomous district and took the name Shunhe Hui District in March 1956.

What to see

The district government lists five National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units here: the Youguo Temple Pagoda (祐国寺塔), better known as the Iron Pagoda (铁塔); the former Henan Preparatory School for Study in Europe and America (河南留学欧美预备学校旧址); the former residence of Liu Qingxia (刘青霞故居); the former Henan Catholic Seminary (天主教河南总修院旧址); and Kaifeng Dongda Mosque (开封东大寺). The Iron Pagoda, the pagoda of Kaibao Temple (开宝寺) built in 1049 under the Northern Song, stands in Iron Pagoda Park (铁塔公园), a 4A-rated scenic area. Shuanglong Lane (双龙巷) is listed by Henan both as a historic and cultural block and as a tourism and leisure street.

Crafts, martial arts and food

Three national intangible-heritage items belong to the district: Bian embroidery (汴绣), known for its seed-knot stitch; the lantern-making of the Zhang family, "Lantern Zhang of Bianjing" (汴京灯笼张), listed in 2008; and stone-lock lifting (撂石锁). Stone-lock lifting is a strength-and-skill exercise that Kaifeng's Hui took up in the Yuan and Ming; it flourished around Dongda Mosque in the Daoguang reign (1821–1851). The seventh generation of the Zhang family founded a lantern exhibition hall on Lishiting Street (理事厅街).

Two food traditions also appear among the district's intangible heritage. The Dongda Mosque Jingtang banquet (东大寺经堂席), a halal feast, was added to the district list in 2023. Kaifeng Chen Family Cuisine (开封陈家菜), a provincial item since 2021, traces its founding to the cook Chen Yongxiang (陈永祥), who prepared the imperial meals for Empress Dowager Cixi and the Guangxu Emperor in Kaifeng in 1901. The dish that stood out at that banquet, Taosibao (套四宝, "four nested treasures"), nests four ingredients, among them chicken, pigeon and quail, one inside another.

Getting oriented

The Longhai Railway and the Zhengzhou–Xuzhou high-speed railway cross the district, and four expressways meet here; the district government calls it Kaifeng's "east gate".

Highlights

• Iron Pagoda 铁塔: Pagoda of Kaibao Temple built in 1049, in Iron Pagoda Park, a 4A scenic area; a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.
• Kaifeng Dongda Mosque 开封东大寺: National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit, rebuilt in 1407 and the centre of Hui martial-arts traditions such as stone-lock lifting.
• Shuanglong Lane 双龙巷: Provincial historic and cultural block and provincial tourism and leisure street.
• Lantern Zhang of Bianjing 汴京灯笼张: Lantern-making family listed as national intangible heritage in 2008; the seventh generation founded an exhibition hall on Lishiting Street.
• Kaifeng Chen Family Cuisine 开封陈家菜: Provincial intangible heritage since 2021; founder Chen Yongxiang cooked for Empress Dowager Cixi in 1901.