Xuan'en County 宣恩县

History and people

From the Ming into the early Qing the area fell under the Shinan pacification commission (施南宣慰司) and the Shizhou garrison (施州卫); Xuan'en County was created in 1736. County soviet governments were formed here in 1933 and 1935, and the county counts as part of the old Hunan–Western Hubei revolutionary base. Besides the Tujia, the Dong are the other large minority, and two townships, Changtanhe (长潭河侗族乡) and Xiaoguan (晓关侗族乡), are Dong ethnic townships.

What to see

The Gongshui River (贡水河) is the spine of the "Romantic Xuan'en" area (浪漫宣恩), an open-access urban scenic area of 3.6 square kilometres rated 4A in October 2021, with ten themed stretches of pavilions, galleries and bridges. The river hosts a leg of the national folk dragon-boat open, a water sports meet and a Qixi river-lantern festival.

Pengjiazhai (彭家寨), on the upper Youshui (酉水) 70 kilometres from the county town, is built around a cluster of Tujia stilt houses (吊脚楼) listed as a national key protected site. The village is run as a 4A living museum of Tujia life, and its design work was shown at three Venice Architecture Biennales, the 16th to the 18th. The Shiziguan scenic area (狮子关) follows a 9.6-kilometre valley that can be driven end to end, past a hydropower station whose dam is built inside a cave, a floating bridge on the water, a colony of more than a hundred wild macaques and the narrow rock clefts of Shizikou (狮子口) and Yixiantian (一线天).

Food and local products

Wujiatai tribute tea (伍家台贡茶) comes from Wujiatai in Wanzhai township (万寨乡), where Wu Changchen (伍昌臣), born in 1757, cultivated wild tea seedlings he found while clearing land. In 1784 officials presented the tea to the Qianlong Emperor, who answered with a four-character inscription, "皇恩宠锡" ("imperial favour bestowed"). Wu fixed the leaves in a wok, rolled them into strips by hand and fried them three or four times until greyish white, giving a tea with an aroma like cooked chestnuts. The craft was added to the Hubei intangible heritage list in 2015, and the Wujiatai tribute tea culture tourism area was rated 4A in December 2016.

Highlights

• Romantic Xuan'en area 浪漫宣恩: Open urban scenic area along the Gongshui River, rated 4A in 2021.
• Pengjiazhai 彭家寨: Tujia stilt-house cluster listed as a national key protected site.
• Shiziguan 狮子关: A 9.6-kilometre drivable valley with a dam built in a cave and wild macaques.
• Wujiatai tribute tea 伍家台贡茶: Tea presented to the Qianlong Emperor in 1784; provincial intangible heritage.