Pingtung Folk Art Museum Introduction
The Pingtung Folk Arts Museum is located in Tienliao Alley, Pingtung City. Its predecessor was the Qiu family's ancient residence "Zhongshidi," originally built in 1896 by Qiu Yuanshou, the son of the Hakka general Qiu Fangyang, who led the Six Piles Hakka troops against the Japanese. Later, Qiu Yuanshou and his son Qiu Qiushun operated the Taiwan Sugar Company, accumulating significant wealth during their business endeavors and renovating Zhongshidi in 1915, which took three years to complete. In 1991, due to the expansion of Zhongzheng Junior High School in Pingtung City, the Qiu family donated two ancient houses and their land to the school. One of the old residences was demolished, and the land was planned for a sports field. In 1993, when the school was preparing to demolish Zhongshidi, local political and academic figures and cultural workers fought vigorously for its preservation, allowing the Qiu family's ancient residence to remain intact. In 1995, Zhongshidi was transformed into the Pingtung Folk Arts Museum and was later declared a historical building in Pingtung County. The total area of the Pingtung Folk Arts Museum is approximately 220 ping, with an exterior layout in a "four-character" shape. It is a traditional Hakka courtyard building with a two-hall and two-cross structure, centered around a courtyard surrounded by a front hall and a back hall corridor. The front hall is the most magnificent part of the ancient residence, featuring clay sculptures and paintings on the roof ridge, with a central screen door adorned with gold leaf decorations. The eaves are decorated with floral carvings, tubular carvings, bird-tray carvings, and lion-seat carvings, while the left and right porches have clay sculpture paintings. These intricate decorations symbolize the prosperous family background of the Qiu family at that time. Thus, the decorative craftsmanship of the Pingtung Folk Arts Museum is quite rich, showcasing exquisite artistic decorations such as stone carvings, wood carvings, pebble wash, paintings, Chaozhou ceramics, paper-cutting, and clay sculptures. Additionally, it has completely preserved the gate tower, horizontal alley, ancestral hall, half-floor, courtyard, and corridors, all of which indicate that the Folk Arts Museum is a uniquely characterized historical building.
