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Summary: Tianjin Northwest Corner — Muslim Food and Street Changes is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Next, I went to Zhimeizhai, which Xiaolin recommended, to have water caltrop soup (lingjiao tang) and old-style tofu (lao doufu). Their beef sesame flatbread (shaobing) is really good. The account keeps its focus on Tianjin Halal Food, Northwest Corner, Muslim Streets while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.





Next, I went to Zhimeizhai, which Xiaolin recommended, to have water caltrop soup (lingjiao tang) and old-style tofu (lao doufu). Their beef sesame flatbread (shaobing) is really good.













The alleys near Lingdang Pavilion that were waiting to be torn down have now completely disappeared.











I returned to the busy Xiguan Street.





This was my second time at Ye's Rice Noodle Rolls (changfen), and I finally saw the owner. The owner is a girl from Guangzhou. They say she met a guy from Tianjin while traveling in Thailand. They fell in love, got married, and eventually came back to the Northwest Corner to open this rice noodle roll and beef offal shop.





Then I went to eat the shrimp-in-egg (xia che dan) and octopus balls (takoyaki) next door. Shrimp-in-egg is just a shrimp wrapped inside a quail egg, topped with mayonnaise and mustard, and finished with a generous sprinkle of bonito flakes. It is especially delicious!





When I went the night before, the candied hawthorn skewers (tangduier) were sold out, so I made a special trip this time to buy one to eat. I also bought their apricot jam, which is sweet and tastes great.







I met a little kid who really wanted some steamed pear cake (shuligao). The way he looked at it, he was practically diving into the cake. I believe this shop will be a wonderful memory for him when he grows up, just like the Longfu Mosque snack shop is in my heart.



June 2018

In 2018, I suddenly heard that the once-busy Xiguan Beili Market in the Northwest Corner had been cleared out. So, on June 10, I went to see what Xiguan Beili looked like after the clearance.

I had heard many people praise the crispy rice pancake (guobacai) at Zhengweizhai next to the South Mosque (Qingzhen Nansi) in the Northwest Corner. People say it is the best beef-sauce crispy rice pancake nearby. I headed straight to Zhengweizhai early in the morning, but when I arrived at nine o'clock, they had just sold the last bowl. I was very disappointed to miss it.



I strolled back from Zhengweizhai to the gate of the South Mosque and bought two fried cakes (zhagao) at Longyuezhai. You have to eat fried cakes while they are hot! Longyuezhai closed down in September 2018. This might have been the last summer everyone could eat fried cakes at the gate of the South Mosque.







Across from Longyuezhai is Enqingcheng Guobacai. Their shop is very busy, so I waited in line to buy millet porridge (miancha) and crispy rice pancake. Tianjin's millet porridge is thicker than Beijing's. You have to sprinkle two layers of spiced salt on it, and it is very satisfying to eat. Their crispy rice pancake is also very delicious.













Another big breakfast area in the Northwest Corner is on the south side of Jieyuan Road at the Northwest Corner intersection. I bought a Tianjin-style vegetable roll (sujuanquan) here to eat.





This fried dough stick (guoz) stall is right in front of Yangyi Restaurant on Jieyuan Road. People say their egg-filled fried dough stick (jidan guozi) is the best in the Northwest Corner.



A flatbread (dabing) filled with everything!



I really like the steam rising from the steamer; it creates such a great atmosphere.



This shop sells various kinds of rice cakes and donkey roll cakes (lvdagun).



A savory crepe (jianbing guozi) stall is a must-have.



Sesame flatbread (shaobing) and steamed buns (baozi).



Keep walking south from the South Mosque (Nan Si), and you will see that the shops in the northern part of Xiguan Beili are still there.









Keep heading south until you reach Xiguan Street, where most of the shops have been cleared out.





Luckily, my favorite Hailan black beans (wudou) are still there!







Eating hot black beans while walking is so delicious.



Compared to the morning, the night at Northwest Corner (Xibeijiao) is also very interesting. Although the night market at the intersection was cleared out two years ago, some stalls still appear there, like this Old Ma pancake (jianbing) stand.





Two eggs and two fried dough sticks (guozhi) make for a very satisfying meal.







Then I bought some sour plum drink (suanmeitang), which is homemade with rock sugar and plum pulp to help with digestion and boost the appetite.





Summer nights definitely need barbecue.



October 2018.

I went to Tianjin for a food tour on Sunday, October 14, 2018. Ten o'clock is an awkward time for the Northwest Corner. I went straight to the meat porridge (rouzhou) at the entrance of the South Mosque, but it had just sold out, and the millet flour tea (miancha) next door had also just sold out. I planned to have the meat porridge next time, but the shop was cleared out shortly after.





I ate a warm red bean paste rice cake (gaogan) from Wenergu Gaogan at the entrance of the Great Southern Mosque (Nandasi).





The Longyuezhai Zhangji fried cake (zhagao) I ate in the summer has actually closed down.



This Yishuncheng branch on Huanqing West Alley opened recently, so I had a bowl of scorched rice soup (guobacai) there.









The freshly brewed sour plum drink (suanmeitang) on Xima Road is really delicious.







I had a beef pancake (niuroubing) with rice porridge next to the Muslim supermarket.













I bought a pear cake (ligao) from Daiji Candy Shop at the archway of the Great Southern Mosque (Nandasi).













May 2019

I visited Tianjin again in May 2019 and took a walk around the Northwest Corner (Xibeijiao).

The various snacks at Daiji Candy Shop under the Great Southern Mosque (Nandasi) archway are perfect for tea. I bought beef jerky and potato chips, and I especially like their beef jerky.









You can buy the ingredients for making traditional sour plum drink (suanmeitang) at Daiji Candy Shop under the Great Southern Mosque (Nandasi) archway in the Northwest Corner (Xibeijiao) nearby.



I also bought Tianjin-style steamed pear cake (shuligao) on Xiguan Street, and every flavor was different.







June 2019

On June 30, 2019, I made a special trip to the Northwest Corner of Tianjin for a snack tour.

I got up early and headed straight to Zhengweizhai next to the South Mosque in the Northwest Corner to eat savory crepe strips in gravy (guobacai). They are open from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. I had been there several times before and it was always sold out, but this time I finally got to eat it.

Zhengweizhai is known as the best place for guobacai in Tianjin, and the line there every morning is the longest in the Northwest Corner. Mu Sangu runs Zhengweizhai, making sure the gravy is hot, the toppings are plentiful, and the crepe strips are made in-house. The spoonful of black sauce that Mu Sangu ladles onto the crepe strips is their secret recipe, and that one spoonful puts them miles ahead of everyone else.

Also, mung bean crepe strips spoil easily in the summer, so guobacai shops traditionally used to close for the summer or switch to selling mung bean starch soup (fentang). Now that we have refrigerators, most breakfast shops keep the crepe strips in the fridge during the hottest days, but this ruins the flavor and texture. Zhengweizhai is the only one that still insists on closing for the summer, shutting down from mid-July to mid-August every year.









Zhengweizhai still keeps the tradition of serving guobacai with steamed corn buns (wotou), but this time we chose to buy hot-water dough red bean paste fried cakes (zhagao) from across the street. The hot-water dough fried cakes are red, which is different from the traditional yellow glutinous rice fried cakes, but they are also very delicious.









After finishing the crispy rice pancake (guobacai), I turned the corner and went to Chenmeizhai nearby for vermicelli soup (fentang) and millet porridge with sesame paste (miancha). Vermicelli soup is a traditional Tianjin breakfast, but it is getting harder to find these days, and this was my first time trying it. It is made by pouring a savory sauce over vermicelli noodles, topped with dried shrimp and chive leaves, which makes it taste incredibly fresh. I have been drinking millet porridge with sesame paste since I was a kid, but the version in Tianjin is truly better than the one in Beijing. Tianjin's version uses two layers of sesame paste and seasoned salt, making it much richer and more fragrant than the Beijing style.









Across from Chenmeizhai is a shop selling steamed rice cakes (gaogan), so I bought some fresh ones filled with red bean paste. I have loved these steamed rice cakes since I was little, but the ones sold in supermarkets dry out and lose their texture. They have to be freshly made and hot to taste good.









I walked north from the South Mosque in the Northwest Corner to Jieyuan Road to eat fried bean skin rolls (juanquan). Fried bean skin rolls are a Tianjin specialty snack. They are made by wrapping bean sprouts, starch noodles, and fermented bean curd paste in bean skin and deep-frying them until they are hot, crispy, and fragrant.









November 2019

On November 2, 2019, during late autumn, I went to Tianjin to explore and eat, heading straight to the Northwest Corner first thing in the morning. Over the past few years, I have watched the Northwest Corner go from bustling to quiet, seeing one renovation after another and shop after shop closing down. This time when I visited the Northwest Corner, it felt even quieter than before. The only good news is that a few new shops have opened in the Northwest Corner, and I tried two of them this time.

I started with a savory crepe (jianbing guozi) from the shop under the South Mosque archway. It is run by the nephew of Auntie Mu from Zhengweizhai, and it tastes just like the old days and is cheap.







I had lamb porridge at the halal porridge house by the entrance of the South Mosque. The porridge house has only been open for half a month, and after the renovations in the Northwest Corner, it is finally possible to get lamb porridge again. The lamb porridge of the Hui Muslims in Tianjin is made by boiling down the bone fat and marrow from lamb leg bones, making it very flavorful. It is a bit like the Kazakh Nauryz meat porridge I had before, made by Master Rouhua.







I also bought some stir-fried shrimp paste (chao xiajiang) at the South Mosque archway.





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Summary: Tianjin Northwest Corner — Muslim Food and Street Changes is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Zainab loved the steamed rice cake (gaogan) we bought at the gate of the South Mosque last time. The account keeps its focus on Tianjin Halal Food, Northwest Corner, Muslim Streets while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.



Zainab loved the steamed rice cake (gaogan) we bought at the gate of the South Mosque last time. This time she tried it a new way, spreading hawthorn jam directly over the red bean paste, which made it taste twice as good.





I ate beef steamed dumplings (zhengjiao) at Shanji on Xiguan Street. They were made with leavened dough, so I felt full the moment I finished.





May 2020

I had not left Beijing for three months. When the Chaoyang District finally turned green during the May Day holiday, I quickly went to Tianjin for a visit. Since it was Ramadan, I could not really enjoy the food tour.

I came to the Northwest Corner in the afternoon to shop. I bought dried apple and pineapple and hawthorn strips (jinggaotiao) at Daiji Candy Shop, but unfortunately, I could not find the beef jerky I really like.



Dates (yezao) for Ramadan









I bought ingredients for sour plum drink (suanmeitang) at Xiaolao Yan Chaolaowei Nut Shop, and I started brewing it as soon as I got home!







Sheep trotters (yangti) and sour plum drink (suanmeitang) bought at Shengfahao







I bought a seaweed rice roll with egg yolk and pork floss at Zhangji Fried Skewers.





Xiguan Street during the pandemic





March 2021

On the weekend of March 12, my parents-in-law were in Tianjin, so Zainab and I went there to have a family reunion. This was also my first time leaving Beijing in 2021.

On Saturday morning, the whole family went to the Northwest Corner to have breakfast. We had millet flour porridge (miancha) and starch soup (fentang) at Chenmeizhai, and crispy crepe strips in sauce (guobacai) at Enqingcheng. The line at Zhengweizhai was too long, so we skipped it. It was a pity that the mutton porridge was sold out.



















Then we had three-delicacy tofu (sanxian laodoufu) and water caltrop soup (lingjiao tang) at Yishuncheng, fried bean paste rolls (juanquan) at Dingji, and fried cakes (zhagao) at Shengxingzhai.















We passed by Guishunzhai.



Strolling around the Northwest Corner.





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Summary: Beijing Mishi Hutong Mosque — Southern-Style Architecture is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Today, tucked behind construction hoardings next to the Caishikou subway station in Beijing, two historical buildings remain from the Daji area demolition ten years ago. The account keeps its focus on Beijing Mosques, Mishi Hutong, Muslim Heritage while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

Today, tucked behind construction hoardings next to the Caishikou subway station in Beijing, two historical buildings remain from the Daji area demolition ten years ago. One of them is the famous former residence of Kang Youwei. The other is a two-story building that once housed the old Bianyifang restaurant, which first opened in the 14th year of the Yongle reign of the Ming Dynasty (1416). The old Bianyifang closed in 1937 due to the war. Soon after, Hui Muslims from the five northwestern provinces living in Beijing raised over 10,000 yuan to buy the building. After renovations, it officially became the Mishihutong Mosque on January 1, 1940, and also served as the office for the Northwest Five Provinces Association.

The building housing the Mishihutong Mosque was originally built in the mid-to-late Qing Dynasty. It started as an L-shaped structure made of three northern rooms and four western rooms. It featured a hard-mountain roof with a rolled-shed style (yingshan juanpeng ding) and a suspended-mountain open corridor (xuanshan changlang) connected together, with a garden on the east side.

The old Mishihutong area has been completely leveled, leaving only the mosque building.



A view of the mosque from the northeast.



A view of the mosque from the north. The north building is on the left and the west building is on the right. You can see the simple gray brick walls and arched windows.



On the connected roof of the north building, you can see exquisite hanging eaves (daogua meizi), wooden railings, and brick carvings.





When it was converted into a mosque in 1940, three southern open-hall rooms were added, changing the L-shaped layout into a U-shaped one. At the same time, a two-story flat-roofed open hall was built in the recessed area, connecting with the southern open-hall rooms to create a semi-enclosed space on the second floor used as the main prayer hall. After the renovation, the building only kept a small courtyard on the east side, and you must pass through the open hall to enter each room, which is a typical feature of southern architecture.

Looking at the mosque from south to north, the west building is on the left, and the south open-style pavilion (changxuan) added in 1940 is on the right.



Looking at the mosque from east to west, the south open-style pavilion is on the left, and the connected north building is on the right.



The flat-roofed open hall (changting) added in 1940.





The exquisite wooden lattice screens and door lintel carvings on the first floor of the mosque, along with some abandoned rooms. You can see that time stopped here in April 2012, exactly 10 years ago.

In the 1940s, the Mishi Hutong Mosque became a center for Hui Muslims from the northwest living in Beijing, with Imam Ye Liangpu serving as the first head imam. At that time, the Mishi Hutong Mosque and the Tianqiao Mosque, also built during the Republic of China era, were brother mosques that would invite each other's imams.

After the 1960s, the Mishi Hutong Mosque was turned into a dormitory for a toy factory and later became a residential compound.

After the Daji area southeast of Caishikou was demolished, more than 30 guild halls, various temples, shops, and former residences of famous people were turned into ruins. By 2012, only the former residence of Kang Youwei and the Mishi Hutong Mosque remained as historical buildings. It is a pity that the original gate of the Mishi Hutong Mosque, which featured traditional Arabic calligraphy, has been torn down, leaving only the small two-story building inside. People say both the Mishi Hutong Mosque and the former residence of Kang Youwei will be renovated and repurposed, but it is unclear what this place will look like then.



















The second floor of the mosque was once a private dining room for the Old Bianyifang Restaurant. Later, it became the office for the Northwest Five Provinces Association and the main prayer hall of the mosque. It then served as a dormitory for a toy factory and a crowded residential courtyard, before finally falling into ruins.



















After visiting the ruins of the Mishihutong Mosque, I rode my bike to the Zhengyang Bookstore in Xisi. I looked through the Xuannan Hongxue Tuzhi, a book about the history and culture of the Xuannan area, and found the original architectural surveys of the Mishihutong Mosque inside. You can clearly see the open space added to the second floor, along with many wooden lattice screens.









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Summary: Tehran Reza Abbasi Museum: Persian Miniatures, Ceramics and Islamic Art is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: In the second half of 1978, strikes and protests almost paralyzed all of Iran, and the Reza Abbasi Museum was forced to close in November. The account keeps its focus on Tehran Travel, Islamic Art, Persian Miniatures while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

In the second half of 1978, strikes and protests almost paralyzed all of Iran, and the Reza Abbasi Museum was forced to close in November. In 1979, the Pahlavi dynasty fell, the Islamic Republic of Iran was established, and the Reza Abbasi Museum reopened. After closing and reopening several more times, the museum is now managed by the Iranian Cultural Heritage Organization and houses various precious Iranian artifacts from prehistoric times to the Islamic period.



Table of Contents

1. Miniatures from the Shahnameh (Book of Kings)

1. Shahnameh miniatures from the Ilkhanate period

2. Shahnameh miniatures from the Timurid period

3. Shahnameh miniatures from the Safavid dynasty period

2. Miniatures from the Compendium of Chronicles (Jami' al-tawarikh) from the Timurid Empire period

3. Other miniatures

4. Pottery from the 9th to 10th centuries unearthed in the ancient city of Nishapur in Khorasan

5. Ceramics from the 12th to 14th centuries from the ancient Iranian city of Kashan

6. Iranian tiles from the 12th to 13th century Seljuk Empire and

the Ilkhanate period.

7. A gold-inlaid silver plate made in 1009 AD.

1. Miniatures from the Shahnameh (Book of Kings)

Persian miniature painting emerged during the Mongol invasion in the 13th century. During the Ilkhanate rule in the 13th and 14th centuries, the royal court moved often for seasonal changes, wars, and hunting. Portable books became the best surface for painting, and the art of miniatures continued to grow. The Mongols brought many Eastern artistic influences to Persian miniatures. For example, some mythical beasts were drawn to look like qilin, phoenixes, pixiu, and Chinese dragons.

Several centers for Persian miniature painting appeared between the 13th and 15th centuries. As the capital of the Ilkhanate, Tabriz was the earliest center for miniatures, and Baghdad, which was under Persian rule at the time, was also very important. In the mid-to-late 14th century, Shiraz in southern Iran became a center for literature and art, and Shiraz miniatures became world-famous. By the early 15th century, after the Timurid era, Bukhara and Herat became centers for miniatures under the patronage of the Timurid royal family. During this period, each miniature painting center had its own unique style. These styles did not gradually merge until the Safavid dynasty ruled in the 16th century.

1. Miniature paintings from the Book of Kings (Shahnameh) during the Ilkhanate period.

During the Ilkhanate period, miniature paintings based on classic Persian poetry began to appear. The most famous is the Persian epic poem Book of Kings (Shahnameh), written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between 977 and 1010. It describes the myths and historical legends of the Persian Empire from its founding until it was conquered by the Arabs in the 7th century.

The earliest surviving Ilkhanate manuscripts of the Book of Kings are three small manuscripts. This small size was likely more convenient to carry while moving between nomadic camps.

The two images below are illustrations from the manuscript known as the First Small Book of Kings, which is believed to be in the late 13th-century Baghdad style.





This depicts the Iranian prince Salm killing his younger brother Iraj out of jealousy. Years later, Iraj's grandson, the legendary king Manuchehr, killed Salm to avenge his grandfather.

The two images below are illustrations from the manuscript known as the Second Small Book of Kings, which is believed to be in the late 13th-century Baghdad style.



This depicts the Kabul princess Rudaba talking to her female slave so she could meet her husband, the Iranian king Zal. Rudaba is the mother of the legendary hero Rostam, the protagonist of the Book of Kings.



This depicts Ardashir, the founder of the Persian Sasanian dynasty, receiving a warning from his enemy Haftvād.

There are four other manuscripts produced in the early 14th century by the Injuid family, who ruled the Shiraz and Isfahan regions of southern Iran and were semi-independent from the Ilkhanate.

The image below is one of these, done in the Shiraz style. It shows the Iranian hero Bahram being mortally wounded by Tazhav while fighting the Turanians (the Persian name for Central Asian people), a scene from shortly before his death.



Among the Shahnameh manuscripts from the Ilkhanate period, the most famous one is known as the Great Mongol Shahnameh, the Great Ilkhanid Shahnameh, or the Demotte Shahnameh. It is considered the greatest work of early Persian miniature painting.

In the early 14th century, the Persian Jewish vizier of the Ilkhanate, Rashid al-Din, set up a book production department in the suburbs of the Ilkhanate capital, Tabriz, specifically to create books containing miniature paintings. After Rashid al-Din died in 1318, his son Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad continued his father's work by producing miniature manuscripts in the 1330s.

Based on research by later historians, it is believed that Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad produced the Great Mongol Shahnameh manuscript in Tabriz in 1335, under the patronage of the ninth Ilkhanid ruler, Abu Sa'id Bahadur Khan (reigned 1316–1335).

The Great Mongol Shahnameh was kept in Tabriz until the 16th century, after which it entered the library of the Golestan Palace in Tehran. In the late 19th century, taking photographs of the manuscript was still restricted.

In the early 20th century, the Belgian art dealer Georges Demotte, who was active in Paris, acquired the Great Mongol Shahnameh. Because he could not get a suitable price from potential buyers like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Demotte eventually tore the manuscript apart to sell it in pieces. To hide the damage caused by tearing the book apart, Demotte hired calligraphers to add new text to the manuscript, which greatly annoyed buyers who could read Persian.

The image below is an illustration from the Tabriz-style Great Mongol Shahnameh, depicting the hanging of Mani.







2. Shahnameh miniature paintings from the Timurid dynasty

During the Timurid dynasty, Bukhara became a center for producing the Book of Kings (Shahnameh).

The image below shows a late 14th-century illustration of the Book of Kings in the Herat style, depicting the Iranian hero Bahram shooting his prey.



The image below shows an early 15th-century miniature painting of the Book of Kings in the Bukhara style, depicting Garsiwaz killing his brother, the Turanian king Afrasiab.





3. Miniature paintings of the Book of Kings from the Safavid dynasty period

During the Safavid dynasty's rule over Iran in the 16th and 17th centuries, the production of Book of Kings miniature paintings saw a revival. Ismail I (reigned 1502-1524), the founder of the Safavid dynasty, used the production of Book of Kings manuscripts to emphasize the authority of Persian kings and to strengthen Persian patriotism. Later generations consider the miniature painting created during the Safavid period to be the last great era of the art form.

A 16th-century miniature painting of the Book of Kings in the Tabriz style, depicting the hero Esfandiyar slaying a dragon. Esfandiyar was an Iranian prince, and his father once sent him to suppress a rebellion and rescue a kidnapped princess. On his journey, he fought seven different battles, one of which was killing a dragon.



A 16th-century miniature painting of the Book of Kings in the Tabriz style, depicting the legendary hero Rostam fighting his enemies.



A late 16th-century miniature painting of the Book of Kings in the Khorasan style, depicting the Turanian king Afrasiab being led out of a cave by Houm.



A 16th-century Shiraz-style miniature painting from the Shahnameh, showing the Iranian hero Bahram on his way to Egypt.



A 16th-century Tabriz-style miniature painting from the Shahnameh, showing the war between Darab, Shoaib, and the Arabs.



A late 16th-century Shiraz-style miniature painting from the Shahnameh.



A 17th-century Shiraz-style miniature painting from the Shahnameh, showing the war between the legendary King Kay Khosrow of the Iranian Kayanian dynasty and King Shideh of Turan.



3 Produced by Tahmasp I of the Safavid dynasty.

Tahmasbi Shahnameh miniature painting.

The Tahmasbi Shahnameh, also called the Houghton Shahnameh, was commissioned by Tahmasp I (reigned 1524-1576) of the Safavid dynasty. The greatest painters of the Safavid era worked on it, and it originally included 258 miniature paintings. Because the Safavid capital was in Tabriz at the time, the Tahmasbi Shahnameh has a Tabriz style.

In 1959, the famous collector Arthur Houghton bought this Shahnameh from the wealthy French Jew Edmond de Rothschild. Only 118 miniature paintings remained at that time.

Since 1962, Arthur Houghton broke up the Tahmasbi Shahnameh and donated 88 of the paintings to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York to avoid taxes (Houghton had served as the president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art for many years). After that, Houghton auctioned off the miniature paintings several times. After Houghton died in 1990, the Houghton Foundation decided to sell the collection for 13 million dollars, but no one bought it because the price was too high. British seller Oliver Hoare suggested that Iran trade the remaining Shahnameh miniatures for the painting Lady No. 3 by Dutch artist Willem de Kooning, because the painting was banned from public display in Iran for being anti-Islamic. In the end, the Tahmasbi Shahnameh returned to Iran.

The image below shows the Sassanid king Bahram Chobin (reigned 590-591) fighting Sava Shah.



A Shahnameh miniature produced by Ismail II of the Safavid dynasty.

Ismail II (reigned 1576-1577) was the third ruler of the Safavid dynasty. At that time, the Safavid capital was Qazvin, Iran (1548–1598), so the miniatures from this period have a Qazvin style.

The image below shows the author of the Shahnameh, Ferdowsi, walking toward several court poets of the Ghaznavids. An enlarged version of this miniature is posted in the hall right at the entrance of the Reza Abbasi Museum. It is also the cover of the book Entering the Orchard in Spring.





Reproduction:



The image below shows the legendary Iranian prince Siavash undergoing a trial by fire, while his father, the Iranian king Kay Kavus, and his stepmother, Queen Sudabeh, watch from a balcony.



The image below shows Siavash hunting with the Turanian king Afrasiyab. The second part of the Shahnameh says that Siavash willingly became a hostage in Turan so that Iran and Turan could have peace. However, the king broke the peace treaty and committed a series of atrocities, which made Siavash decide to start a new life in Turan. King Afrasiyab of Turan gave Siavash a warm welcome, and Siavash fell in love with the king's daughter and married her.



The image below shows the story of the mythical bird Simurgh taking care of the great hero Zal. Simurgh is a kind mythical bird in Iranian legends, similar to a phoenix. It appears often in various Iranian myths, most famously in the Shahnameh.

In the Shahnameh, the Iranian hero Saam's son, Zal, was born with albinism. Saam thought his son was a demon's child, so he abandoned him on Mount Alborz. The kind Simurgh living on the mountain peak heard the baby crying and raised him. Zal learned much wisdom and knowledge from the loving Simurgh.

In the picture, the mythical bird Simurgh is holding the baby Zal, and below them is Zal's father, Saam.



The image below shows the scene of the Iranian hero Esfandiyar slaying a dragon. Esfandiyar was an Iranian prince, and his father once sent him to suppress a rebellion and rescue a kidnapped princess. On his journey, he fought seven different battles, one of which was killing a dragon.



The image below shows the scene of the Iranian hero Esfandiyar killing the Turanian hero Biderafsh. When the King of Turan learned that the Iranians had converted to Zoroastrianism, he wrote a letter to the King of Iran demanding they abandon their faith and sent Biderafsh as a messenger to Iran. The King of Iran refused the demand, which started a war between Turan and Iran. During the war, Biderafsh was killed by the Iranian hero Esfandiyār.



The image below shows the legendary Iranian King Kay Khosrow talking with the Iranian heroes Zal, Rostam, and others.



The image below shows the legendary Iranian King Kay Khosrow crossing a river with his mother Farangis and the hero Giv.



The image below shows the King of Yemen, Sarv, sitting on his throne with his three daughters on his left and the three sons of the mythical Iranian King Fereydun on his right.



The image below shows the Iranians surrounded by the Turanian army on Mount Hamawan as they watch reinforcements arrive.



The image below depicts the tragic story between the Iranian hero Rostam and his son Sohrab. Once, Rostam followed the tracks of his lost horse to the Kingdom of Samangan, where he met Princess Tahmina. The princess admired Rostam greatly, so she came to his room at night and said that if he gave her a child, she would return his horse. Rostam agreed and did so. Before leaving, Rostam gave the princess two tokens. If she gave birth to a girl, she should braid the tokens into the child's hair along with some jewelry. If it was a boy, they tied the token to the child's arm. Later, the princess gave birth to a boy and named him Sohrab.

Many years later, Iran and Turan went to war. As a legendary hero of Iran, Rostam forced the Turan army to retreat, and no one dared to face him. Eventually, Sohrab and Rostam fought each other. Although he knew his father was named Rostam, he did not know that the man in front of him was his father. After a long battle, Rostam finally broke Sohrab's back and stabbed him. Before he died, Sohrab said his father would avenge him, and that was when the father and son finally recognized each other. Sohrab took out the token his mother had given him. Rostam was heartbroken, but he could not save his son.



Other miniature paintings in the Qazvin style.

The image below is a 16th-century Qazvin-style miniature painting from Saadi's The Orchard (Bustan).

The Orchard (Bustan) is a collection of lyric poems completed by the famous Persian poet Saadi in 1257. It is considered one of Saadi's two greatest works, alongside The Rose Garden (Golestan).



2. Miniatures from the Compendium of Chronicles (Jami' al-tawarikh) from the Timurid Empire period

The Compendium of Chronicles (Jami' al-tawarikh) is a world history book from the Ilkhanate period. It was commissioned by the seventh Ilkhan, Ghazan (reigned 1295-1304), and edited by his vizier and scholar Rashid-al-Din Hamadani. Because of its scope, the book is known as the first world history. It covers various histories, cultures, and major events from China to Europe.

By the early 14th century, the Mongols of the Ilkhanate had settled down and adopted Persian cultural customs. Ghazan's original idea was to write a book that preserved the traditions of the Ilkhanate Mongols by explaining their history on the steppes. To compile the history, Rashid-al-Din set up a special area at the Rab'-e Rashidi university in the Ilkhanate capital of Tabriz. This area included many buildings such as a mosque, a hospital, a library, and classrooms.

After Ghazan died in 1304, his successor, Öljaitü (reigned 1304-1316), asked Rashid-al-Din to expand the scope of the compilation to cover the entire known world history. The Compendium of Chronicles was finally completed between 1306 and 1311. Afterward, Rashid-al-Din organized hundreds of miniature painters and calligraphers to produce one Persian copy and one Arabic copy of the Compendium of Chronicles every year to distribute to schools throughout the Ilkhanate. Rashid-al-Din produced 20 copies of the Compendium of Chronicles during his lifetime, which are known as the first-generation manuscripts. Only a very small number have survived, and they are extremely precious examples of early Persian miniature painting.

In the early 15th century, the Timurid Empire replaced the Ilkhanate as the ruler of Iran and took a great interest in the Compendium of Chronicles. At that time, Shah Rukh (reigned 1405-1447), the ruler of the eastern part of the Timurid Empire, owned an incomplete manuscript of the Compendium of Chronicles. He commissioned the court historian Hafiz-i Abru to continue the work in Herat, Afghanistan, which was Shah Rukh's capital. The continuation brought the content up to the Timurid era, and the miniature paintings in it have a typical Timurid style.





3. Other miniatures

A 16th-century miniature painting from Saadi's The Rose Garden (Gulistan).

Saadi Shirazi was a famous 13th-century Persian poet. He is widely considered one of the greatest poets in classical Persian literature and has had a huge influence on later generations. The Rose Garden (Gulistan, literally meaning 'rose garden') is a masterpiece of classical Persian literature. Saadi wrote it in 1258, and it is a collection of poems and stories.

The image below shows a 16th-century miniature painting of The Rose Garden in the Herat style from the Safavid dynasty.



A 15th to 16th-century miniature painting in the Bukhara style.

A 15th-century miniature painting from the Timurid dynasty in the Bukhara style, depicting 'Imam Ali slaying a dragon' in the Khavaran-Nameh.



A 15th-century miniature painting of Saadi's The Orchard (Bustan) in the Bukhara style.



A 16th-century miniature painting in the Bukhara style.



A miniature painting in the Khorasan style.

A 15th-century miniature painting of The Garden of Truth (The Hadiqa Tul Haqiqat) in the Khorasan style. The original work is by the famous 11th to 12th-century Persian Sufi poet Sanai, and The Garden of Truth is his masterpiece.



A miniature painting in the Shiraz style.

16th-century Shiraz-style miniature painting.



Herat-style miniature painting.

1592 Herat-style miniature painting showing two people in a garden.



4. Pottery from the 9th to 10th centuries unearthed in the ancient Khorasan city of Nishapur.

Nishapur is located on the ancient Silk Road in northeastern Iran and was once one of the four major cities in the Greater Khorasan region. In the 9th century, Nishapur became the capital of the Persian Tahirid dynasty. Under the rule of the Persian Samanid dynasty in the 10th century, Nishapur grew into an important cultural and commercial center of the Islamic world. Various cultures and religions gathered here, and trade routes from Transoxiana in Central Asia, China, Iraq, and Egypt met in this city. The glazed pottery produced in Nishapur at that time became an important trade commodity in the West, once rivaling Baghdad and Cairo.

In 1221, the Mongols massacred the population of Nishapur and completely destroyed the city, burying the former metropolis underground. It was not until the mid-20th century that the site was rediscovered through archaeological excavations. Today, most of the unearthed Nishapur ceramics are kept at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, as well as in museums in Tehran and Mashhad.













5. Ceramics from the 12th to 14th centuries from the ancient Iranian city of Kashan

Kashan is south of Tehran. During the Seljuk Empire and Ilkhanate rule from the 12th to 14th centuries, it was a major center for making high-quality pottery and tiles in Iran. In modern Persian, the word for tile (kashi) comes from Kashan.



















6. Iranian tiles from the Seljuk Empire and Ilkhanate period, 12th to 13th centuries.

The tiles have a very unique style.









7. A gold-inlaid silver plate made in 1009 AD.

They feature beautiful Kufic calligraphy. At that time, the Buyid dynasty ruled western Iran, and the Ghaznavid dynasty ruled the east.





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Reposted from the web

Summary: Hyderabad — Muslim Food and Old City Streets is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: It is the Lunar New Year, so let's eat something good. The account keeps its focus on Hyderabad Travel, Indian Halal Food, Muslim Heritage while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

It is the Lunar New Year, so let's eat something good! Collapse Read »

Reposted from the web

Summary: Carter Holton's Old Photos of Kaligang Tibetan Hui Muslims is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Pastor Hai Yingguang was an American missionary whose original name was Carter Holton. The account keeps its focus on Tibetan Hui Muslims, Old Photos, Muslim Heritage while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

Pastor Hai Yingguang was an American missionary whose original name was Carter Holton. He worked in Northwest China from 1923 to 1949 and left behind over 5,000 precious photographs. After Pastor Hai Yingguang passed away, his daughter Lora Jean Heurlin donated these materials to the Harvard-Yenching Library in the early 1990s. The library finished digitizing them in 2011.

Online address: library.harvard.edu/collections/carter-d-holton-collection

In 1930, Pastor Hai Yingguang and his family returned to Xunhua, Qinghai, for missionary work. Between 1932 and 1934, he took some precious photos of the Kaligang Tibetan Hui Muslims. Kaligang is located in the southwest of Hualong, Qinghai. Kaligang means big mountain in the Tibetan language. The area is full of high mountains and deep gullies, making transportation very difficult. In 1756, Ma Laichi, the founder of the Huasi menhuan, went to the Kaligang area to preach. This led local Tibetan people to convert to Islam, forming the unique Kaligang Tibetan Hui Muslims.

The brick carvings of the Huangwuju mosque in Dehenglong Township and the Kaligang Tibetan Hui Muslims. On the right is the leader of the Dehenglong Kaligang tribe.



Kaligang Tibetan Hui Muslims in 1932.









In Dehenglong, Kaligang in 1932.



Kaligang Tibetan Hui Muslims in 1933.

























































Kaligang Tibetan Hui Muslims in 1934.









Kaligang Tibetan Hui Muslims photographed in Labuleng Town in 1939.

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Summary: Kazan Kremlin — Tatarstan Museum and Muslim Heritage is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Kazan Kremlin sits in the heart of Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, and started as a fortress for the Volga Bulgaria khanate. The account keeps its focus on Kazan Travel, Tatarstan Museum, Muslim Heritage while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

The history of Kazan city.

Kazan Kremlin sits in the heart of Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, and started as a fortress for the Volga Bulgaria khanate. After the 9th century, the Bulgars living along the Volga River kept expanding to the northwest. To protect trade routes on the Volga, the Bulgars built a military fortress between the 10th and 11th centuries in the middle reaches of the river, featuring a 4-meter-deep steep trench and a 3-meter-high earthen wall; this marks the beginning of Kazan's history as a city.

In the late 12th century, the Volga Bulgaria khanate added a 2-meter-thick white stone wall to Kazan city to defend against constant attacks from Russian principalities. After Kazan joined the Golden Horde in the 13th century, it jumped from a border fortress to become the political and economic center of the middle Volga, famous for leather, jewelry, ceramics, and metalwork.

After the Golden Horde collapsed in the 15th century, the Kazan Khanate (1438-1552) was established in Kazan. As the capital, Kazan's population grew quickly, and many homes and public buildings were built, including the Kazan Khan's palace, courtyards, mosques, and tombs, with tall minarets defining the city skyline.

In 1552, Ivan the Terrible of Russia attacked Kazan, destroyed the Kazan Khanate, and forced all Tatars out of the city, allowing only Russians to settle there. Between 1556 and 1562, Ivan the Terrible ordered the construction of the Kazan Kremlin on the site of the old Kazan Khanate fortress. The mosques, the Kazan Khan's palace, and the tombs were first used as armories and ammunition depots, but they were all torn down by the 18th century.











Restoration images of the Volga Bulgaria and Kazan Khanate periods from the official Kazan Kremlin website.





The tomb of the Kazan Khan.

In 1977, water engineers digging for a rainwater pipe at the Kazan Kremlin accidentally uncovered a tomb and immediately contacted the archaeology department. Archaeological excavations lasted for 10 years and uncovered five graves. Two were confirmed to be those of the actual founders of the Kazan Khanate: Kazan Khan Mäxmüd (died in 1463 or 1466) and his grandson, Kazan Khan Möxämmät Ämin (died in 1518). The tomb was originally built from white stone and eventually collapsed in the 17th century.

For further research, the remains of the two Kazan Khans, Mäxmüd and Möxämmät Ämin, were kept at the Institute of Archaeology of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences for 40 years. In May 2017, after persistent efforts by the Tatar Muslims of Kazan, the two Kazan Khans were finally reburied not far from the original tomb site.

The burial site discovered in 1977.





Likely relics from the Khan's palace mosque.



Khan Mäxmüd was the eldest son of Ulugh Muhammad, the Great Khan of the Golden Horde, and a descendant of Genghis Khan's eldest son, Jochi. In 1438, his father Ulugh Muhammad occupied Kazan and began constant raids on the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Mäxmüd joined his father's attack on Moscow and won a major victory in 1445, capturing Grand Prince Vasily II and forcing the Grand Duchy of Moscow to pay tribute to Kazan. Mäxmüd took the throne in 1445 and kept control over Moscow. During his reign, Kazan completely separated from the Golden Horde, marking the beginning of what later generations called the Kazan Khanate.

Khan Muhammad Amin was the grandson of Khan Mahmud. From the age of 10, he was involved in the struggles between pro-Russian and anti-Russian factions within the khanate. As a khan supported by Moscow, he took the throne three times: from 1484 to 1485, 1487 to 1495, and 1502 to 1518. He also paid tribute to Grand Prince Ivan III of Moscow. Later in his reign, he stopped paying tribute to Moscow and worked to strengthen his country to oppose the Grand Duchy of Moscow.

The burial site was re-interred in 2017.





Between 2004 and 2005, the Institute of Archaeology of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences re-excavated the Kazan Khan mausoleum. They discovered the graves of four more Kazan khans: Khalil (died 1467), Ibrahim (died 1478), Safa Giray (died 1549), and Canghali (died 1535). Today, these four Kazan khan graves are protected under a glass roof.

Khan Khalil was the eldest son of Khan Mahmud. He was known for violating treaties with the Grand Prince of Moscow and for his poor relationship with the Nogai tribe. The young khan died early, not long after taking the throne. One legend says he died in prison due to the war with the Golden Horde.

Khan Ibrahim was the younger brother of Khan Khalil. He fought against the Grand Duchy of Moscow many times and won a great victory in the 1467 war against Grand Prince Ivan III of Moscow.

Khan Safa Giray came from the Giray family of the Crimean Khanate. He served as the Kazan khan three times: from 1524 to 1531, 1535 to 1546, and 1546 to 1549. Safa Giray was an anti-Russian Kazan khan. His first reign ended when the Grand Duchy of Moscow attacked Kazan. Four years later, he took the throne again after Kazan nobles overthrew the pro-Russian khan. Eleven years later, internal unrest in Kazan led to him being overthrown again by the pro-Russian Kazan Khan. Safa Giray fled to his father-in-law's Nogai tribe, returned to Kazan with a Nogai army a few months later, and became the Kazan Khan for the third time.

Khan Ghali was originally the khan of the Qasim Khanate, a vassal state of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. In 1532, Grand Prince Vasily III of Moscow defeated the Kazan Khan Safa Giray and installed 16-year-old Khan Ghali as the pro-Russian Kazan Khan. He died in 1535 during a coup by Kazan nobles.









The names of six Kazan khans



Kul Sharif Mosque

At the entrance of the Kul Sharif Mosque inside the Kazan Kremlin, there are performances about the Siege of Kazan. In 1552, Ivan the Terrible besieged Kazan. The last imam of the Kazan Khanate, Seid Kul Sharif, led the people in a final stand and eventually died in the city. Today, Seid Kul Sharif is a national hero to the Kazan Tatars, and the new Kul Sharif Mosque built in 2005 is named after him.







The imam chanting inside the mosque has a beautiful and moving voice. This is the first time I have seen a mosque open to tourists to experience chanting firsthand.



There is a small Islamic culture museum on the basement level of the mosque.



A pocket-sized Quran (gureani) from the Kazan Tatars in the late 19th century.



A display showing an imam and a student (hailifan) teaching scripture in the 19th century.



Porcelain from the ancient city of Bolghar dating back to the 10th to 13th centuries.





A decorative panel from the Golden Horde period.



Literacy materials and magazines for Kazan Tatars from the early 20th century.







A handsome Tatar guy was selling mouth harps (kouxian) at the mosque entrance, and I really regret not buying one.





Republic of Tatarstan Museum

The National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan opened in 1895. The building was once the Gostinniy Hotel and is a historical monument of Tatarstan itself. The museum has over 800,000 items in its collection, including pieces related to the Golden Horde, the Kazan Khanate, and the Kazan Tatars.



A letter written in 1523 by Sahib I Giray, the Khan of Kazan who reigned from 1521 to 1524. There is a replica of this letter inside the Kazan Kremlin.

Sahib Giray was a descendant of Jochi, the eldest son of Genghis Khan, and his grandfather founded the Crimean Khanate. In 1521, the Kazan Khanate wanted to break free from the Grand Duchy of Moscow. They overthrew the pro-Moscow Kazan Khan, Shahghali, and invited Sahib Giray from Crimea to Kazan to become the new Khan.

Sahib Giray attacked Moscow twice, in 1521 and 1522, and brought back many captives. In 1524, Moscow sent a large army to attack Kazan, forcing Sahib Giray to flee back to Crimea.

People actually know Sahib Giray better for what happened after that. In 1532, the Ottoman Empire installed Sahib Giray as the Crimean Khan. That same year, he built a new capital, Bakhchisarai, in a valley downstream from the old capital of the Crimean Khanate. For the next 250 years, Bakhchisarai served as the capital of the Crimean Khanate, where successive Khans built palaces and various mosque buildings. Today in Bakhchisarai, you can still see the Great Khan Mosque and the Sary Guzel bathhouse, both built under the direction of Sahib Giray in 1532.





A tombstone from the Golden Horde period in the 14th century.



Architectural pieces from the Golden Horde period in the 14th century. The bottom left shows pieces from the Great Mosque of Bolghar, dating from the late 13th to early 14th century.















A water basin from a public bathhouse in the ancient city of Bolghar during the 14th-century Golden Horde period.



Gate components from the Great Mosque of Bolghar during the Golden Horde period, dating from the late 13th to early 14th century.







A tombstone from Kazan during the Golden Horde period in the early 14th century.





A tombstone from the 14th to 15th century, dating back to the Golden Horde or Kazan Khanate period.





A miniature Quran box used by Kazan Tatars from the late 18th to the 19th century.





Jewelry worn by Kazan Tatars from the late 18th to the 19th century.













Embroidered caps worn by Kazan Tatars from the 19th to the early 20th century.













A 1902 publication from Kazan University Press introducing the ship Nu Hai and artifacts from the ancient city of Bolghar.





Traditional clothing of the Kazan Tatars from the 19th to the early 20th century.

















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Reposted from the web

Summary: Qur'anic Manuscripts in Foreign Libraries: Islamic Calligraphy and Art is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: You can view beautiful ancient Quran manuscripts from various library and museum collections online at the Library of Congress website. The account keeps its focus on Quran Manuscripts, Islamic Art, Calligraphy while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

You can view beautiful ancient Quran manuscripts from various library and museum collections online at the Library of Congress website.

Online address: www.loc.gov/search/? fa=subject%3Akoran&st=list&c=150

9th-century Damascus

This Quran manuscript held by the Bavarian State Library originally came from a private library in Damascus and is one of the most important and oldest Quran manuscripts preserved in the West. This manuscript uses verse separation marks that originated in the 8th century, and the consonants lack diacritical marks, so it is estimated to be from the 9th century.





11th-12th century Seljuk Empire

This Quran manuscript held by the Bavarian State Library was produced in Iran or Iraq during the 11th-12th century Seljuk Empire and is written in Naskhi script on gilded pages. The manuscript was heavily trimmed when the cover was made in the 18th century, causing losses to the titles and margins.









11th-12th century Eastern Iran

This Quran manuscript held by the Bavarian State Library is believed to come from Eastern Iran and dates to the 11th-12th century Samanid period based on its calligraphy and decoration.









1226 Seville, Spain

This Quran manuscript in the Bavarian State Library was made in Seville, Spain, in 1226. It is a very rare surviving Andalusian Quran manuscript, written in Andalusian script on parchment. During the Reconquista, exiled Andalusians took this manuscript to North Africa. In 1535, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V seized it from Tunis while on an expedition against Barbary pirates. It later made its way into the Munich Court Library.











1306 Morocco

This Quran manuscript in the Bavarian State Library was commissioned in 1306 by a Moroccan ruler, Abu Ya'qub Yusuf Ibn Ya'qub (reigned 1286-1307). The main text is written in black Maghrebi script, and the headings are in gold Kufic ink.













13th-15th century Andalusia, Spain

This is a wooden board from the National Library of Spain, used by students at a madrasa in Andalusia between the 13th and 15th centuries. Students wrote surahs on it for practice, and teachers corrected their work.





14th-century Mamluk Egypt

This Quran manuscript in the Bavarian State Library was made during the 14th-century Mamluk dynasty in Egypt. It is written in large, golden Muhaqqaq script, a style commonly used during the Mamluk period. The lotus patterns on the manuscript were introduced to the Middle East by the Mongols in the 13th century.









15th-century Northern India

This Quran manuscript in the Walters Art Museum is believed to have been made in northern India in the 15th century. The seal of Ottoman Sultan Bayezid II (reigned 1481-1512) appears on the eighth page. The manuscript is written in Muhaqqaq script, with some explanations in Naskh and Thuluth scripts.















18th-century Maghreb

This Quran manuscript in the Walters Art Museum collection contains surahs 19 through 23. It was made in the 19th-century Maghreb region, which includes Mauritania, Algeria, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia. The manuscript is written in Maghrebi script, while the titles are in New Abbasid script written with gold ink.





1714 Iran

This Quran manuscript in the Bavarian State Library was made in 1714 during the Persian Safavid dynasty. It uses a tiny but clear Naskh script. The golden cloud swirls on the edges are typical of Shia style, and the floral decorations are written in beautiful Persian.











Late 19th-century Malay Peninsula

This Quran manuscript in the British Library is believed to be from the east coast of the Malay Peninsula in the late 19th century. The manuscript has features typical of the Pattani region in southern Thailand, including black backing paper made in Thailand and wave patterns in the Pattani style. However, the paintings and decorative patterns are more typical of the Kelantan region in Malaysia, and it likely belonged to the Sultan's court in Terengganu.





1852 Iran

This Quran manuscript in the National Library of Iran was made in 1852 in the ancient Persian city of Shiraz. The scribe was the calligrapher Abdol-Vahhab Naghmeh.













1945 Oman

This Quran manuscript in the Sultan Qaboos University library was made in Oman in 1945. It was copied by Sayf ibn Muhammad ibn Salim al-Tawqi and Abdulkarīm ibn ʻUmar ibn Mūsā al-Nawfalī. This Quran contains the first six surahs. The first chapter, Al-Fatiha, is decorated to look like a door, which symbolizes that Al-Fatiha is the entrance to the Quran. The script in this manuscript is very unique. While it has some elements of cursive script (naskh) and thuluth script (thuluth), the overall style is different from any other font.





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Summary: Wuhu and Hexian Hui Muslim Communities — Mosques and Halal Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Hui Muslims began settling in Wuhu by the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. In the early Qing dynasty, they built their first mosque near Jixiang Mosque, located where the Yangtze River and Qingyi River meet. The account keeps its focus on Wuhu Muslims, Hexian Muslims, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

Wuhu

Hui Muslims began settling in Wuhu by the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. In the early Qing dynasty, they built their first mosque near Jixiang Mosque, located where the Yangtze River and Qingyi River meet. The Wuhu Mosque was burned down during the Taiping Rebellion between 1853 and 1861. In 1864, community members raised funds to buy land and rebuild it outside the North Gate at Beilangpu, which is the current site of the Wuhu Mosque.



After the Chefoo Convention was signed between China and Britain in 1876, Wuhu became the first treaty port in Anhui. In 1882, Li Hongzhang established a rice market in Wuhu. As business in the city grew, many Hui Muslims from surrounding areas moved to Wuhu to make a living.

At that time, Hui Muslims from Shandong, Henan, and northern Anhui mostly ran halal snack shops or pulled rickshaws. Those from Zhenjiang and Yangzhou mostly ran hardware, copper, and tin shops. Hui Muslims from Huaining, Tongling, Hexian, and Wuwei in Anhui mostly worked in small workshops making soap, candles, and soda ash, while many others worked in the slaughter and sale of cattle and ducks.

In 1902, as the number of Hui Muslims in Wuhu grew, community members raised funds to expand the mosque's main prayer hall, lecture hall, reception hall, and ablution room. The main prayer hall and reception hall still stand today. At the same time, a free halal school was opened inside the mosque. In 1913, the halal school became the Halal National Primary School, which accepted both Hui and Han students.















After the Japanese army occupied Wuhu in 1937, the mosque was damaged again. In 1944, community members raised funds for repairs and expanded the halls. At the same time, the Halal National Primary School was renamed the Private Halal Primary School with Ma Chunting as principal, and a women's mosque was added.



After 1966, the rare copies of the Quran (Gure'ani) kept at the Wuhu Mosque were burned. The plaques and couplets in the main hall, as well as items used for bathing and funerals, were smashed, and the carvings on the buildings were destroyed. The mosque management committee rented some of the mosque's rooms to the Wuhu Engraving Factory, which is how the building finally escaped total destruction.

After 1979, the mosque management committee reclaimed the property and renovated the mosque.

Between 2005 and 2007, the main gate of the Wuhu Mosque was demolished and replaced with a modern building.

This photo shows the main gate of the Wuhu Mosque, taken by the famous missionary Claude L. Pickens between 1934 and 1935, and is now held in the Harvard-Yenching Library collection.



In 2007, the south gate and the buildings behind it at the Wuhu Mosque were demolished and rebuilt as modern structures.



In front of the current mosque gate.





In 2017, the imam at the Wuhu Mosque was Imam Tao from Shou County, Anhui, who was a very warm and kind person.



Halal food.

Halal food in Wuhu began to flourish after the port opened in 1876, but declined after the public-private partnership reforms in 1956. The trade focused on beef and duck slaughtering and selling raw and cooked beef. During its peak, there were over 30 shops including Malongxing, Mayixing, Jinlongxing, Hachangxing, Lanyisheng, Wanglongxing, Maowanxing, and Quanhexing. Among them, Jinlongxing's braised beef, Sachangxing's salted pressed duck (ban ya), and Mayixing's oil-poached chicken (you ji) were the most popular. Today, only Mayixing remains.

In the late 19th century, 13-year-old Ma Zhongyou, a Hui Muslim from Qijiawan in Nanjing, came to Wuhu with his father to make a living. He opened the Mayixing halal food shop on Xinwu Road (formerly Wan'an Bridge) by the Yangtze River, selling the cheapest 'grab-grab rice' (zhua zhua fan)—a meal of rice and dishes mixed together and eaten by hand—to dock workers and rickshaw pullers.

In 1910, Mayixing moved to Xihuayuan and began the business of slaughtering ducks and geese and selling braised duck. At that time, Wuhu was a bustling commercial hub with many traveling Muslims, and Mayixing began to gain a reputation.

In 1918, Ma Zhongyou and his son Ma Weirong rebuilt the shop on Xinwu Road and officially named it 'Halal Mayixing Restaurant.' Their signature dishes were osmanthus duck (guihua ya), pipa-shaped duck (pipa ya), and duck pancakes (ya bing). They also sold snacks like steak, fermented bean curd fish (zao yu), pickled shrimp (qiang xia), beef potstickers (niurou guotie), and braised beef noodles. At that time, Mayixing sold thousands of ducks every day and only closed at night.

After the Japanese army occupied Wuhu in 1937, Ma Zhongyou went north of the Yangtze River to take shelter, while his son Ma Weirong took the family to Hengyang, Hunan, to escape the war. Mayixing was left to Ma Zhongyou's cousin, Ma Zhonghe, to manage. In 1940, Ma Zhongyou and his son returned to Wuhu to continue running Mayixing. After 1945, Ma Zhongyou handed Mayixing over to his son Ma Weirong completely and started his own incense and candle shop called Matongsheng.

After the public-private partnership in 1956, Mayixing was merged into a major store directly under the Wuhu Catering Service Company, with Ma Weirong still in charge of operations. At that time, Mayixing was famous for its salted pressed duck (xianpi banya), hanging oven roast duck (diaolu kaoya), fried beef steak with sauce (jiangzha niupai), braised beef noodles (hongshao niurou mian), and beef potstickers (niurou guotie). It remained very popular, with long lines forming every morning.

After 1966, the old Mayixing plaque was smashed and the equipment was destroyed. Business became very poor, and the shop closed several times before finally resuming operations in the mid-1970s.

In the early 1990s, demolition began on Xinwu Road. Ma Weirong passed away at 94, one day before the demolition, and Mayixing fell into a difficult situation afterward. In 1996, Pan Min contracted Mayixing and bought out the trademark in 1999. In 2001, Pan Min rebuilt Mayixing on Phoenix Food Street, but it closed two years later due to shareholder disputes and poor management.

In 2005, Wang Yijin, a Hui Muslim who ran the Niuxiangyuan halal restaurant, bought out the Mayixing trademark and took over the business. Wang Yijin's parents worked in the halal food industry. In the early 1980s, the Wang family opened a halal snack shop in Dalongfang, later adding braised beef and fresh beef and lamb, which earned them a great reputation. In 2004, Wang Yijin and her sisters pooled their money to open the Niuxiangyuan Halal Restaurant in the Muslim market outside the Wuhu Mosque. In 2007, Wang Yijin renovated the Muslim market outside the mosque, and the new Mayixing opened. The first floor serves breakfast snacks and specialty braised dishes, while the second floor hosts banquets, a layout that remains today.







Crab roe soup dumplings (xiehuang tangbao)





Mayixing duck balls (yaqiu), which have a very rich aroma.





A platter of beef, beef tripe, and beef tendon.



Pan-fried soup dumplings (shengjian xiaolong tangbao)





Besides Mayixing, there are other halal food shops outside the mosque.













I bought a Suzhou-style mooncake (sushi bingwang) made by the Wannan Halal Food Factory; it is the largest mooncake I have ever eaten.







Hexian County

Hexian County was called Hezhou before 1911. Records show that Hui Muslims began settling there in the early Ming Dynasty.



In the early Ming Dynasty, the family of Ada, a vice-minister of the Central Secretariat in the late Yuan Dynasty, was settled in Hezhou and became known as the Yuhetang A family.

The family of Ma Chengzu moved to Hezhou from Xinxiang, Henan, in 1387. Two people from the Ma family served as government officials during the Ming Dynasty. One was Ma Zhiji, who became a jinshi scholar in 1607. He worked in the Hanlin Academy. In 1624, he joined a petition to impeach Wei Zhongxian, which led to him being stripped of his rank and imprisoned. He was not cleared of these charges until after 1628. The other was Ma Rujiao, who became a jinshi scholar in 1622. He served as a censor in 1629 and impeached several of Wei Zhongxian's associates. Later, he served as a circuit inspector in Sichuan. In 1633, he was killed while resisting Li Zicheng's forces when they captured Hezhou.

Sa Zhongqian's family moved from Guanzhong, Shaanxi, to Hezhou in 1399, the first year of the Jianwen reign. This is the Sa family of Maokuantang, which is the family of Sa Beining.

During the Xuande reign of the Ming Dynasty (1426-1435), Sai Zhongyu's family moved from Wendeng, Shandong, to Hezhou. They are known as the Sai family of Yijingtang.

During the Chenghua reign of the Ming Dynasty (1465-1487), Wang Zhen's family moved from Taiyuan to Hezhou. They are known as the Wang family of Qinyitang. Records show that Wang Zhen could memorize anything he read from a young age. He became a jinshi scholar in 1487 and served as the magistrate of Pujiang County, Zhejiang.

In the early years of the Wanli reign (after 1573), Wang Congpu was appointed as the education official of Hezhou. His family moved from Wangjia Caiyuan in Wanping County to settle in Hezhou. They are known as the Wang family of Xingchengtang.

During the Qing Dynasty, Tong Xiaoqiao's family moved from Jintai Mountain in Xi'an Prefecture, Shaanxi, to Hezhou. They changed their surname to Tong and are known as the Tong family of Jintaitang. The Li family moved from Longxi, Gansu, to Hezhou and are known as the Li family of Shousutang. The Zu family moved from Panxi Ferry in Yuncheng County, Shandong, to Hezhou and are known as the Zu family of Panxitang, among others.

In the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China era, Hui Muslims in Hexian County mainly worked in halal food businesses, cattle slaughtering, flour mills, leather workshops, candle workshops, oil mills, and as bamboo craftsmen and blacksmiths. Larger businesses included the Sa Wancheng grocery store, the Haifutai cotton firm, and the Luyitai general goods store. Miejian Street in He County is a traditional street for Hui Muslim bamboo craft workshops. It is mainly home to Hui Muslims with the surnames Ma, Sa, and Li. They are famous for their bamboo craftsmanship, mainly producing bamboo beds (zhuchuang), bamboo chairs (liankai), shoulder poles (biandan), and red chairs (zhuyi).



Bamboo Craftsman Street (Miejian Jie)



He County Grand Mosque (He Xian Qingzhen Dasi)

Historically, there were four mosques in the town of He County: the Grand Mosque, the South Gate Mosque, the East Gate Mosque, and the Women's Mosque. Currently, only the Grand Mosque and the East Gate Mosque remain. After Ramadan in 2007, the East Gate Mosque closed and is now used only for funeral services. Since then, the Grand Mosque is the only mosque open in He County town.



The Hezhou Grand Mosque was first built in 1368, the first year of the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty. According to the Records of Rebuilding the Confucian School in Hezhou, the new magistrate Yi Luan visited the Confucius Mosque in 1525, the fourth year of the Jiajing reign. He claimed the mosque was an improper shrine that indulged the Hui Muslims, so he ordered the Hezhou mosque to be destroyed. It was not until 1637, the tenth year of the Chongzhen reign, that the mosque was rebuilt. This happened after the rebel army led by Hui Muslim Ma Shouying from Shaanxi joined other late Ming rebel forces to capture Hezhou.



The current mosque was rebuilt in 1837, the seventeenth year of the Daoguang reign. In 1905, the thirty-first year of the Guangxu reign, Ma Jianyu led the creation of a private primary school next to the Grand Mosque. In 1914, they built more than 20 classrooms and renamed it the Qingzhen National Central Primary School.











Between 1942 and 1943, the famous imam Ma Pinsan served as the head of the He County Grand Mosque. Imam Ma Pinsan was born Ma Yujin. He came from a family of imams in Hezhou. For eight generations, his family members served as head teachers or imams at the South Gate Mosque and the Great Mosque in Hezhou. Ma Pinsan was born in 1907. He graduated from the He County Fourth National Primary School. In 1918, at age 12, he began studying under Imam Wang Zidun at the mosque outside the South Gate of He County. In 1922, at age 16, he went to the Denglong Lane Mosque in Nanjing to study under Imam Ye Liangfu. In 1924, at age 18, he went to Henan to study under Imam Hei at the Shanyitang Mosque in Kaifeng and Imam Ding Junfu at the Zhengzhou Mosque. Imam Ding gave him the name Pinsan. In 1927, he graduated from the Zhengzhou Mosque and received his formal religious credentials.

In April 1942, the Great Mosque of He County sent people multiple times to invite Ma Pinsan to return home as head teacher. Sometimes they sent five people at once to show their sincerity. However, the Denglong Lane Mosque in Nanjing, where Ma Pinsan worked, did not want to let him go because talent was hard to find. Ma Pinsan ended up serving as head teacher for both mosques, rotating every month. He asked Jin Yuanqing, a senior student (khalifa) at the Nanjing Qiushi Arabic School, and Li Huacheng, a student (khalifa) at the Great Mosque of He County, to manage the mosques when he was away.

In July 1943, Li Huacheng returned to his hometown to serve as head teacher at the South Gate Mosque in Liuhe County. The Great Mosque of He County had to hire someone else. Ma Pinsan stopped his dual role and stayed as head teacher at the Denglong Lane Mosque in Nanjing until 1954. In 1954, Ma Pinsan was hired as head teacher at the Chengxi Shanxiang Mosque in Zhenjiang. He served there until he passed away in 1963 at the age of 56.

Imam Ma Pinsan cared deeply about his hometown of He County. In 1947, he sent all the savings he had accumulated over the years to He County, hoping to open an Arabic school there. According to his younger sister Ma Yuying, three rooms had already been built for the school. Later, Ma Pinsan also convinced his family to sell their jewelry to provide more funds for the school. In 1948, He County was liberated, and the school was forced to close.



Halal food.

During the Republic of China era, famous halal restaurants in He County included Laochunyuan, Taoyuan, Dingxinyuan, Qileyuan, Lihengmao, Laomaxiangxing, Zhenmaxiangxing, and Tongsanhe. Their fried beef was the most famous dish. There were also the Wang family slaughterhouse and the Tong family slaughterhouse, both famous for their beef soup.

In 1937, the Japanese army bombed Hexian. Most of the shops and restaurants owned by Hui Muslims in Hexian were burned down, but they slowly recovered afterward.

After the public-private partnership in 1957, there were 81 Hui Muslims working in the halal food industry in Hexian and 66 people working in the beef slaughtering industry. Today, the Minzu Restaurant in Hexian is run by Lu Guangyi, who serves traditional fried beef (zha niurou).















River-crossing ferry

The Mahe ferry travels from Shibahe Village in Wujiang Town, Hexian, to Ma'anshan. It covers a straight-line distance of 3.4 kilometers, making it one of the longer ferry routes across the Yangtze River. Cars are on the lower deck while people are on the upper deck. It feels a bit nerve-wracking to walk up and down the stairs when it gets windy.













The Wuhu ferry crossing was located next to Yijishan Hospital. It stopped operating in 2014 and is now a parking lot.







The passenger ferry is located behind the tourist passenger terminal and sails to Erba Town in Chaohu on the opposite bank.















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Reposted from the web

Summary: Anqing Hui Muslim Community — South Gate Mosque and Halal Food is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: I visited the Hui Muslim community in Anqing in 2017 and would like to share some details about the mosques and halal food there. The account keeps its focus on Anqing Muslims, China Mosques, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

I visited the Hui Muslim community in Anqing in 2017 and would like to share some details about the mosques and halal food there.

Hui Muslims settle in Anqing.

In 1381 (the 14th year of the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty), the Hui Muslim general Ma Jucheng led his troops to guard Anqing and was named General Mingwei. Many of his officers and soldiers were also Hui Muslims, and they settled in Anqing with him. Ma Jucheng's descendants are also known as the Ming Ma family. In 1389 (the 22nd year of the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty), another Hui Muslim general, Ma Hazhi, was transferred to the Anqing Left Guard. His descendants were hereditary commanders of the Anqing Guard and became known as the Wei Ma family, the most important Hui Muslim family in Anqing.

According to the Huaining Ma Family Genealogy, a version revised by the Dunyue Hall in the second year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty and kept at the C. V. Starr East Asian Library at Columbia University, the ancestor of the Wei Ma family was Ma'iz, a Rum person from the Western Regions. His name was translated into Chinese as Ma Yize, so his descendants took Ma as their surname. Rum refers to the Anatolian Peninsula, now translated as Rûm (meaning Roman). It was once territory of the Eastern Roman Empire, and from the 11th to the 14th century, the Seljuk dynasty established the Sultanate of Rum there.

According to the family genealogy, Ma Yize came to the Song Dynasty in 961 (the second year of the Jianlong reign of the Song Dynasty) to help compile the Ying Tian Calendar. He was appointed as the Director of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau and granted a hereditary marquis title. The 18th-generation descendant, Ma Hazhi, who had been on a pilgrimage to Mecca, took office at the Anqing Left Guard in 1389 (the 22nd year of the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty). Ma Hazhi had two sons. His second son, Ma Lin, had three sons: Ma Yi, Ma Jun, and Ma Bao. All three brothers were soldiers, and Ma Yi had the most outstanding military achievements. He was also the founder of the Nanguan Mosque in Anqing.

In 1466 (the second year of the Chenghua reign), Ma Yi returned home with honors, and in 1468 (the fourth year of the Chenghua reign), he was granted the hereditary title of General Piaoji. His younger brothers, Ma Jun and Ma Bao, who fought alongside Ma Yi in Guangxi, were granted the titles of General Wude and General Wubei in the early years of the Chenghua reign, serving as hereditary thousand-man commanders and garrison commanders of the Anqing Guard.

After returning to his ancestral home, the three Ma brothers established the clan hall Qingzhen Dunyue Tang in 1469 (the fifth year of the Chenghua reign) inside the Great South Gate of Anqing, and compiled the Ma Family Genealogy of Qingzhen Dunyue Tang in 1471 (the seventh year of the Chenghua reign).

A shop at the Great South Gate of Anqing with the Dunyue Tang hall name written on it.



Nanguan Mosque.

In 1469 (the fifth year of the Chenghua reign), Ma Yi built the Anqing Nanguan Mosque on Zhongxiao Street inside the Zhenhai Gate (South Gate) of Anqing, with the main entrance facing the city wall, and built the Ma Family Qingzhen Dunyue Tang as a residence next to the mosque. After Ma Yi passed away, his descendants held the hereditary positions of Anqing Guard Commander and Assistant Commander for seven generations, and as late as 1648 (the fifth year of the Shunzhi reign) and 1650 (the seventh year of the Shunzhi reign), Ma Mingluan still held the positions of Anqing Guard Seal Holder and Chief Transport Officer.













Anqing Nanguan Mosque was originally named Qingzhen Tang, and was later renamed a mosque. Around the Tianqi reign of the Ming Dynasty, Ma Ruxuan, the 27th generation descendant of Ma Yize, began serving as the imam of the mosque, and his descendants served as imams for 10 consecutive generations until the late Qing Dynasty imam Ma Xiaowen.

In 1643 (the 16th year of the Chongzhen reign), the late Ming warlord Zuo Liangyu led his troops through Anqing, massacred the residents in the south of the city, and the mosque was damaged. During the middle of the Kangxi reign, the main hall was rebuilt, and the Mingde Hall and the left and right corridors were constructed. In the early years of the Daoguang reign, north and south lecture halls were built, and in the late years of the Daoguang reign, the Moon-Sighting Tower (Wangyue Lou), also known as the Octagonal Pavilion (Bajiao Ting), was built.

In 1853 (the third year of the Xianfeng reign), Nanguan Mosque was destroyed in the Taiping Rebellion. After the Qing army recaptured Anqing, Nanguan Mosque was in ruins, so everyone had to purchase a private house northwest of the original site to use as a temporary place for namaz. It was not until 1876 (the second year of the Guangxu reign) that funds were finally raised to build the perimeter walls and gate tower, and the main hall was constructed following the round-ridge style of the Wanshou Palace and Fengzhi Guild Hall. Later, buildings such as a school, a washing room (shuifang), and a water fire brigade station were added. After more than twenty years and a cost of over 10,000 taels of silver, the reconstruction of the Nanguan Mosque was finally completed in 1897 (the twenty-third year of the Guangxu reign).



Between 1934 and 1935, the famous missionary Claude L. Pickens passed through Anqing and recorded precious photos of the Anqing Nanguan Mosque, which are currently kept in the Harvard University Library.

The Anqing Nanguan Mosque photographed by Claude L. Pickens. According to Wang Jianping in the book Old Photos of Islamic Culture in China's Interior and Frontier, the house in the bottom right corner was the residence of Imam Fang Chuqing. His son, Fang Qingru, was a committee member of the Nanmen Mosque management board, and his grandfather, Fang Yucai, was also an imam at the Nanmen Mosque.



According to Wang Jianping in the book Old Photos of Islamic Culture in China's Interior and Frontier, this shows a procession of Hui Muslims in an alleyway carrying a casket to the graveyard, heading from the Anqing Nanmen Mosque toward the mosque outside the city. Several elderly Hui Muslims believe this alley was Zhongxiao Street at the time, while others say it was Sipailou.



Between 1961 and 1965, a research group on Chinese Islamic architecture led by the famous architect Liu Zhiping began field surveys of Islamic buildings in China and captured very precious images of the Anqing Nanguan Mosque before it was occupied by the North Factory.

In his book Islamic Architecture in China, Professor Liu Zhiping used the word "magnificent" to describe the Anqing Nanguan Mosque. He said that Anqing is a waterway terminal on the north bank of the Yangtze River with prosperous commerce, very little flat land, and a hot climate. Therefore, the layout of the Zhongxiao Street Mosque was adapted to local conditions, and to prevent heat, it adopted a small courtyard design, showing an architectural style completely different from those in Shou County and the north.

Professor Liu Zhiping wrote in the book that the main hall's double-eave bracket sets (dougong) extend four tiers, making them extremely decorative. The hip-and-gable roof (xieshan) method involves adding a short eave outside the hard-gable wall. This style is common in Yunnan. It is different from the northern hip-and-gable roof (xieshan) style and also different from the main hall of the Shou County mosque. The gable walls of the hard-gable roof (yingshan) go straight up, which is clearly a more reasonable approach.





Professor Liu Zhiping wrote in his book that the carvings inside the main hall are the most magnificent and moving. Inside the deep and dim main hall, many golden pillars are hung with pairs of long, gold-background couplets. They shimmer with gold light, making the hall feel rich and grand, and showing an atmosphere of dignity and luxury. Using a large number of couplets for decoration inside this hall is a style rarely seen elsewhere. Although the main hall uses an exposed roof structure (cheshang lumingzao), it still uses ceiling boards (wangban) under the rafters and above the purlins, making people feel that the hall's construction is exquisite and of very high quality.



The main hall photographed by Bi Jingshi between 1934 and 1935.



The interior of the main hall photographed by Professor Liu Zhiping in the early 1960s.



Thanks to my friend (dosti) Qi Qiangfei for interpreting the plaques.

The top plaque: The believers have certainly succeeded, they are humble in their namaz.



The top plaque: Wherever you are, you should turn your faces toward the Sacred Mosque.



Remember Me (Allah), and I will remember you.



From left: I believe in Allah. Complete the Hajj and Umrah for the sake of Allah. Pay your zakat.







With the angels





















During the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China era, the mosque school (jingtang jiaoyu) at Nanguan Mosque was very well-developed. The Huaining Ma Family Genealogy records three imams who taught at the mosque school: Imam Ma Guangxia was born in 1767 (the 32nd year of the Qianlong reign) and died in 1823 (the 3rd year of the Daoguang reign). Imam Ma Dicai, the son of Imam Ma Guangxia, was born in 1820 (the 1st year of the Daoguang reign), taught in Hubei, and died after 1876 (the 2nd year of the Guangxu reign). His contemporary, Imam Ma Dien, was born in 1813 (the 18th year of the Jiaqing reign), taught in Guangdong, and died in 1875 (the 1st year of the Guangxu reign).

Later, Imam Ma Dicai trained his nephew, Imam Yang Zizhen, who became a famous scripture teacher. Imam Yang Zizhen went to Xi'an for advanced studies. After finishing his training, he returned to Anqing to teach for over thirty years. He had a deep understanding of both Confucian and Islamic classics. His translation of the Record of Prayer Methods (Baishi Jilue) was published by the mosque. In 1949, Ma Yiyu returned to Anqing and received the manuscripts left by Imam Yang Zizhen. Ma Yiyu edited them into the Collection of Wanpu (Wanpu Shi Canggao).

In 1905 (the 31st year of the Guangxu reign), Zheng Zihui led the effort to establish a primary school at Nanguan Mosque that focused on Chinese language and modern science, which helped educate many famous people. This group included Army Commander Ma Jidi, Minister of Communications Duanmu Jie, famous Islamic scholar Ma Yiyu, and noted educator Ma Yichen.

Until the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, most Hui Muslims in Anqing attended scripture classes at the Nanguan Mosque before entering regular primary school. They used textbooks like the Arabic Alphabet Primer (Tianfang Qimeng Zimu) from the Beijing Muslim Press and the Standard Arabic Phonetic Method (Awen Biaozhun Pinyinfa) from the Shanghai Islamic Book Company.

After 1966, a factory took over the mosque and destroyed all the floors. It was renovated and reopened in 1981.

The Scholar's Residence (Tanhua Di).

Ma Dayong was the 29th-generation descendant of Ma Yize and the 8th-generation descendant of Ma Yi. In 1727, the fifth year of the Yongzheng reign, he placed third in the imperial palace examination. Emperor Yongzheng personally bestowed a plaque reading 'Scholar's Residence' (Tanhua Jidi) to hang above the door of the Dunyue Mosque (Qingzhen Dunyue Tang), which is why the mosque became known as the Scholar's Residence.



After becoming a scholar, Ma Dayong first served as a second-rank imperial guard and a lieutenant colonel in the Shaanxi Firearms Battalion. In 1737, the second year of the Qianlong reign, he was transferred to Yuanzhou, Hunan, as a brigade general. At that time, the Miao people in Yuanzhou occupied a lot of farmland. Ma Dayong rode alone to the Miao village and negotiated repeatedly, eventually convincing them to return thousands of acres of farmland. In 1747, the twelfth year of the Qianlong reign, Ma Dayong was transferred to Yichang, Hubei, as a brigade general, where he built the Yichang Mosque. In 1751, the sixteenth year of the Qianlong reign, Ma Dayong was transferred to Zhangzhou as a brigade general and assistant commander-in-chief. The following year, Cai Rongzu printed books with the words 'Great Ning Kingdom' to prepare for a rebellion against the Qing. Ma Dayong led his cavalry 200 miles to charge directly into Cai Rongzu's camp and captured him. In 1753, the eighteenth year of the Qianlong reign, Ma Dayong served as the brigade general of Taiwan. After a hurricane and tsunami hit Lu'ermen, Taiwan, Ma Dayong led his naval forces to swim through the wind and waves to rescue over 4,000 people. After the tsunami, a plague broke out. Ma Dayong distributed medicine widely and took many measures to prevent the spread of the disease. In 1756, the twenty-first year of the Qianlong reign, Ma Dayong became the Admiral of the Fujian Navy, stationed in Xiamen. He fought hard to clear out pirates, causing many pirate groups to disband. In 1759, the twenty-fourth year of the Qianlong reign, he returned to Anqing due to illness. After he passed away, he was posthumously awarded the title of Grand Master of Glorious Happiness (Ronglu Daifu).



Ma Dayong's grandson, Ma Chen, joined the army as a young man. Over twenty years, he fought in Sichuan, Hubei, Hunan, and Taiwan. In 1838 (the 18th year of the Daoguang reign), he followed Imperial Commissioner Lin Zexu to Guangdong to ban opium. Lin Zexu put Ma Chen in charge of major tasks, including seizing British store ships, confiscating over 20,000 chests of opium, and destroying the opium at Humen. After that, the First Opium War broke out. Ma Chen fought in the battles of Guanyong and Dongyong, winning repeatedly. In 1840 (the 20th year of the Daoguang reign), the British fleet attacked Guangzhou, and he won again in the naval battle. At the end of the year, Ma Chen led hundreds of soldiers to defend the Qingyuan and Weiyuan forts. When reinforcements did not arrive, he died heroically for his country.

West Gate Mosque (Xiguan Qingzhensi)

Besides the South Gate Mosque (Nanguan Qingzhensi), Anqing once had a West Gate Mosque. According to Ma Zhaoceng in 'The Origin and Changes of the West Gate Mosque in Anqing,' the number of Hui Muslims living outside the Zhengguan Gate (West Gate) of Anqing grew during the Qianlong reign. Because the prayer times did not match the city gate's opening and closing hours, it was very inconvenient for them to go to the South Gate Mosque. Ma Tianrong, a 12th-generation descendant of the original ancestor Ma Hazhi from the Dunyue Hall Ma family in Huaining (Anqing), donated the two residences of Yayuan and Yakui located outside the Zhenhai Gate (South Gate). He then built a new mosque at Gou'erkou outside the Zhengguan Gate. Ma Tianrong was born in 1744 (the 9th year of the Qianlong reign) and died in 1788 (the 53rd year of the Qianlong reign), so the West Gate Mosque was likely built in the middle or late Qianlong period.





In 1877 (the 13th year of the Guangxu reign), the West Gate Mosque moved to the back street of Gou'er Mountain outside the West Gate. The people in charge of the relocation included Ma Hongchang and Ma Shaowen. Ma Shaowen was the 33rd-generation descendant of Ma Yize, the original ancestor of the Dunyue Hall Ma family in Huaining, and he was the grandfather of Ma Yiyu.







The main hall of the West Gate Mosque, photographed by Bi Jingshi in 1934.



Before 1949, Ma Yiyu used the family property of the Huaining Dunyue Hall to start Yize Primary School at Xiguan Mosque. After 1949, it merged with Qingzhen Primary School and Qingzhen Mosque Street Primary School.

In the 1950s, Xiguan Mosque became a residential area. In 1995, it was renovated and expanded into a kindergarten for ethnic minorities, leaving only the main gate and side rooms of the mosque. On November 16, 2011, the west side room was demolished, and the ethnic minority kindergarten building was built on the original site.



Dananmen Hui Muslim community.

Hui Muslims in Anqing have lived near Dananmen (Zhenhai Gate) by the Yangtze River for generations. Besides running shops and slaughtering cattle, many lived off the water, working as dock porters or living on boats as independent traders (polo). Others made a living by carrying reeds for fuel from the riverside or fetching water from the river. After the 1990s, many Hui Muslims moved away due to the demolition of the old city, but the Nanmen and Nanshui areas remain areas where Hui Muslims are relatively concentrated.

More than half of the Hui Muslims in Anqing are from the "Ming Ma" and "Wei Ma" lineages. Other surnames include Jin, Ding, Zong, Dong, Si, Ha, Ma, Bai, and Bai. The Jin surname among Hui Muslims is divided into "Nanjing Jin (Jinling Jin)" and "Maoling Jin." According to family records, the ancestor of the "Nanjing Jin" was Yibulajin (now translated as Ibrahim) from the Rumi Kingdom (possibly the Sultanate of Rum), who moved from Nanjing in the early Ming Dynasty. Hui Muslims with the surname Ding state that they moved from Quanzhou in the early Ming Dynasty, and their founding ancestor was an Arab named Ashiding.

According to Ma Yichen's "The Business Operations of Hui Muslims in Anqing Since the Late Qing and Early Republic," there were 64 recorded shops and workshops run by Hui Muslims in Anqing since the late Qing and early Republic. The seven largest were Yingshengtai Grocery Store on Daobashi Street, Yinhe Tea House on Sipailou, Wangtaihe Grocery Store, Xinji Grocery Store, and Yongxingde Hardware Store on Sipailou West Street, Huafeng Money Shop on Penglai Street, and Maxingyu Egg Shop on the riverside road outside the South Gate. Hui Muslims at Dananmen in Anqing mainly engaged in small businesses and worked as porters at the South Gate dock during the Republic of China era. A 1950 survey showed that nearly 100 Hui Muslim households in Anqing were engaged in the halal food and slaughtering industry, mainly distributed near Dananmen. During the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China era, there were four restaurants outside the South Gate on Zhengjie Street: Yanghexing, Maqishun, Fangshunxing, and Magongxing. Other businesses included Yujia Chicken and Duck Restaurant, Yuchangchun Plaster Shop, Zongjia Beef Jerky, Majia Tofu Shop, Majihe Tofu Shop, Dongjia Tea Stove, Fuguilou Teahouse, Dongjia Noodle Workshop, Mayitai Sauce Workshop, Baizhaoji Pastry Shop, and Tongmao Pastry Shop. Yaojia Cattle Slaughterhouse was located in the West Alley outside the South Gate, and Malaowu Cattle Slaughterhouse was in the East Alley outside the South Gate. Wuyue Street had Mayongxing Restaurant, Longmenkou had Lida-ge Beef Jerky, Daobashi Street had Tongjia Tea Stove and Zhengshouhe Pastry Shop, Peide Alley had Liangjia Tea Stove, and Yingjiang Road had Yingjianglou Teahouse.

According to a blog post by an old resident of Anqing, a Hui Muslim named Ma Weiqin opened Mayongxing Restaurant around 1923 at the entrance of the Anhui Provincial Department of Finance on Wuyue Street. At that time, there was no storefront, just a small shed with three small tables for serving breakfast. They started by selling only noodles. After the noodles were cooked, they added different toppings like braised beef, beef offal, beef tripe, or served them plain. Later, they added white rice porridge, steamed buns (mantou), twisted rolls (huajuan), and shuttle-shaped buns (suozimo). The shuttle-shaped bun (suozimo) was Ma Weiqin's specialty. He rolled the dough into a shape pointed at both ends and wide in the middle, made vertical cuts on the surface, brushed it with syrup, sprinkled it with white sesame seeds, and baked it in an oven. When finished, it looked just like a weaving shuttle. In 1931, Ma Weiqin rented a storefront on Shizheng Street and hung up a sign that read Mayongxing Porridge Shop. They offered over ten types of porridge, including vegetarian options like mung bean, red bean, Job's tears, lily bulb, and lotus seed, as well as meat options like beef, shrimp, shredded chicken, and assorted ten-ingredient porridge. To make the beef porridge at Mayongxing, they first made beef meatballs, then boiled white porridge in a wok, added sesame oil, and finished by cooking the beef meatballs in the porridge. The beef porridge made this way smelled delicious.

After Anqing was occupied by Japan in 1938, Mayongxing closed down. It was not until 1946 that Ma Weiqin hung the sign for Mayongxing Canteen (later renamed Mayong Restaurant) at Yubeiting and began selling halal dishes. Mayongxing Canteen was a three-story building that blended Chinese and Western styles, with enough space for 19 square tables across the second and third floors. At that time, Zhang Liguang was the head chef for stir-fry, Wu Konglai was the head prep cook for meat dishes, Sun Jinshan made the flour-based pastries, and there were over 10 other assistants. The most famous dish at Mayongxing Canteen was boiled beef (shuizhu niurou), served with beef on top and greens on the bottom. The meat slices were so tender they had almost no gristle, melting in your mouth as soon as you took a bite. The beef jerky (niuroupu) and smoked fish (xunyu) sold at Mayongxing Canteen were also very special, especially the beef jerky, which had a perfect color, pure flavor, and a fragrant, delicious taste.

The busiest time at the South Gate (Dananmen) was every morning when everyone came to shop.





















I ate pan-fried buns (jianbao) and pan-fried dumplings (jianjiao) filled with beef and tofu, along with mung bean ball soup (lvdou yuanzi tang), at Old Li's Beef Bun Shop at the South Gate. According to a blog post by an Anqing local, the most famous halal mung bean balls (lvdou yuanzi) in Anqing were from the Big Beard Breakfast Shop at the Shizheng Street intersection in the 1930s. The owner, known as Big Beard, was named Liu Jinlin and had a full beard. Anqing mung bean balls are usually served with fried dough cakes (youbing). Big Beard's fried dough cakes were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, thin, golden, and layered, staying soft even when cold. The mung bean balls were even better. They were the size of abacus beads, yellow in color, and tender in texture. Besides flour and mung beans, they were made with extra ingredients like dried soy sauce curd and small dried shrimp.













At Grandma Hui Restaurant, I ordered lotus heart greens (ouxincai), smoked fish, duck broth rice (ya lu paofan), and fish balls. Smoked fish and fish balls are specialties of Anqing Hui Muslims, while lotus heart greens are a seasonal vegetable dish.





















Father and Son Cake Shop is a traditional bakery with the shop in front and the factory in the back. I bought mung bean cakes (lvdougao) and black sesame brittle (heimasutang). The mung bean cake has a special filling inside.















Honey date sticky rice dumplings (mizaozong) and beef sticky rice dumplings (niurouzong) from the Fish Ball and Smoked Fish Shop at South Gate.

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Fish ball shop













Bozhaoji is the largest chain of halal pastry shops in Anhui. Besides Anqing, it also has branches in Hefei and Wuhu.

Bozhaoji was founded in 1904 (the 30th year of the Guangxu reign) by a Hui Muslim from Anqing named Bo Zhaohe. The original Bozhaoji had the shop in front and the workshop in the back. The storefront was small, and it closed down due to debt after operating on and off for seven or eight years. In 1939, Bo Zhaohe's son, Bo Shaoqing, reopened the Bozhaoji pastry workshop. The shop was located in the middle section of Peide Lane, which was the second alley from south to north on South Gate Main Street. Besides the Bo father and son, the shop also hired a master craftsman named Xu Qixian. Bozhaoji thrived from 1939 to 1948, but business declined in 1949 due to the economic collapse in the Jiangnan region.

After the public-private partnership in 1956, Bozhaoji became the Bozhaoji branch of the Anqing Sugar and Pastry General Store. The shop moved to the intersection of Sipailou and South Gate Street. Bo Shaoqing, staff member Ma Zhaofu, and master craftsman Xu Hongyi worked there as employees until they retired.



In 1990, the Anqing Finance Committee cleaned and renovated the four-story production workshop and storefront of another old brand, Mailongxiang's second shop, to meet halal requirements. The Anqing Bozhaoji Halal Food Factory was established at that original site.

In 2003, Bai Zhaoji underwent a complete restructuring to become a joint-stock company. In 2013, it moved its headquarters to Hefei and established Anhui Bai Zhaoji Food Co., Ltd., specializing in European-style baking.

I bought cranberry-flavored lava mochi (baojiang mashu), Mozi pastry (Mozi su), crispy beef (niurou xiangsu), wild camellia oil, and mushroom chicken rice dumplings (zongzi) at Bai Zhaoji.

































I ate braised crucian carp, stir-fried beef tripe, and stir-fried amaranth at Sister Si's Hui Muslim restaurant. Amaranth is in season right now.











The river ferry at Dananmen in Anqing.























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Reposted from the web

Summary: Anqing Hui Muslim Community — South Gate Mosque Photos is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English. The account keeps its focus on Anqing Muslims, China Mosques, Old Photos while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.



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Reposted from the web

Summary: Jiujiang Hui Muslim Community — Mosques, Halal Food and History is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: In 2017, I visited the Hui Muslim community in Jiujiang, Jiangxi. Five years have passed, and since I am stuck at home and cannot leave Beijing, I have to look back on my past travels. The account keeps its focus on Jiujiang Muslims, China Mosques, Halal Food while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

In 2017, I visited the Hui Muslim community in Jiujiang, Jiangxi. Five years have passed, and since I am stuck at home and cannot leave Beijing, I have to look back on my past travels.

The history of the Jiujiang Hui Muslim community

The books "Jiujiang Hui Muslims and Islam" by Ye Ping and "Past and Present of Jiujiang Mosque" by Jiang Yi cover the development of the Hui Muslims in Jiujiang, but their views differ quite a bit. I have organized and summarized them here.

In 1450 (the first year of the Jingtai reign of the Ming Dynasty), the Hui Muslim general Ma Hazhi was transferred to serve as the commander-in-chief of Jiujiang. He brought three imams and over 1,500 Muslim officers and soldiers along with their families to be stationed in Jiujiang. They built the first mosque next to their military camp at Jiwan outside the West Gate. After that, retired officers and soldiers kept settling there, forming the earliest Hui Muslim community in Jiujiang.

During the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, the situation was unstable, so many Hui Muslims left Jiujiang and the mosque was destroyed.

People say the Jiwan mosque was rebuilt during the Qing Dynasty. Two imperial steles were carved during the Qianlong reign, but they were later destroyed in the fires of war, so the history of the Jiujiang Hui Muslims in the early Qing Dynasty remains unknown.

In 1821 (the first year of the Daoguang reign), Hui Muslim generals Tao Kuichen and Zhao Zhenqing from Shouzhou, Anhui, were transferred to serve as the garrison commander and defense battalion leader in Jiujiang. They brought 500 Muslim Flying Tiger Battalion soldiers and their families to be stationed in Jiujiang. After that, many Hui Muslims from Anhui and Henan came to Jiujiang to do business and settle down. In 1830 (the tenth year of the Daoguang reign), Ma Wanhe came from Anhui to Jiujiang to open a pollen shop. In 1848 (the twenty-eighth year of the Daoguang reign), Wang Wanhe came from Anqing to Jiujiang to open the Wang Qichang hat shop. In 1850 (the thirtieth year of the Daoguang reign), Qian Baochang, an antique dealer from Huaining, Anhui, took the lead in donating timber to build two rooms and renovate the Jiwan mosque.

During the Xianfeng era, the number of Hui Muslims in Jiujiang continued to grow. People like Hai Fuhe, Wang Fuxing, Fa Yongzhao, and Ma Chunsheng came from Henan to Jiujiang to open beef shops. In 1854 (the fourth year of Xianfeng), Ma Jintang fled famine in Henan and came to Jiujiang. He studied at the mosque. After marrying into the Ma Wanhe pollen shop, he started his own businesses, the Chunhe Inn and the Ma Jinkang money shop.

After the Treaty of Tianjin was signed, Jiujiang opened as a treaty port in 1862 (the first year of Tongzhi). It became the only transit hub for import and export trade in Jiangxi. Business grew quickly, and more Hui Muslims moved to Jiujiang to settle down. In 1875 (the first year of Guangxu), Jiang Chunhui came from Nanjing to Jiujiang and opened the Tongtai pawnshop. By 1898 (the twenty-fourth year of Guangxu), the Hui Muslim population in Jiujiang reached over 80 households and more than 200 people. That year, Zhu Tianqing, a Hui Muslim general from Shouzhou, Anhui, who served as the Jiujiang Prefecture commander, and Jiujiang brigade general Tao Zhan led the effort to expand the Jiwan Mosque. The new Jiujiang Mosque faced south. It had a prayer hall, a washroom (shuifang), a living room, and living quarters. The front gate faced the busy official street, and the back gate was near the Yangtze River.

The boundary stone set up during the mosque's renovation in the Guangxu era is still preserved today.









Because the mosque was outside the city, it was not very convenient for Hui Muslims living inside the city to visit. In 1902 (the twenty-eighth year of Guangxu), Yang Xianian from Anhui and antique dealer Ma Shoutian led the construction of the City Mosque at the Fourth Pier. The Jiwan Mosque was then called the Outside-the-City Mosque. The City Mosque had four courtyards from front to back, and its first imam was Hu Guangming. The community of the City Mosque was mainly Hui Muslims from Anhui, while the community of the Outside-the-City Mosque was mainly Hui Muslims from Henan. They were divided into the new group and the old group, and both mosques held their religious activities separately.

In the early years of the Republic of China, the Hui Muslim population in Jiujiang reached over 100 households and more than 400 people. In 1935, the Jiwan Mosque moved 200 meters south because of a river levee straightening project, changing its orientation from facing south to facing north.

An aerial photo of Jiujiang city from 1938, kept at the Jiujiang Museum, shows west at the top and east at the bottom.



Between 1934 and 1935, the famous missionary Claude L. Pickens Jr. (Bi Jingshi) came to Jiujiang and photographed the local mosque (huijiao libaitang).



In 1949, there were 50 Hui Muslims running beef shops in Jiujiang, 20 running food stalls, and 2 running pastry shops. During the Republic of China era, the biggest merchant in Jiujiang was Jin Haoru, a Hui Muslim from Zhenjiang. In 1920, Jin Haoru opened the Yusheng Match Company, the largest match factory in Jiangxi Province. In 1932, he opened a large general store called Huakang Hardware and Foreign Goods on Dazhong Road in Jiujiang. Later, he independently founded the Guling Power Plant and the Jiujiang Housheng Pawnshop, becoming the richest man in Jiujiang. By 1953, the total capital of the Huakang Hardware and Foreign Goods store reached 340 million yuan.

The image below shows a halal pastry shop in Jiujiang, photographed by missionary Claude L. Pickens Jr. between 1934 and 1935.



In 1955, there were 252 Hui Muslim households in Jiujiang with 1,035 people, 50 percent of whom were from Henan and 40 percent from Anhui. Many Hui Muslims moved here in the 1950s due to floods, so 104 people were sent back to their original hometowns in 1958. At the end of 1958, the city mosque was closed and turned into a halal canteen and the office for the Jiujiang Hui Muslim Cultural Association, later becoming the Liangxinglong Food Factory. In 1966, the suburban mosque was occupied by a rope factory. All the scriptures kept inside were burned, and all mosque property was confiscated. It reopened in 1982 and was rebuilt as a modern building in 2008 due to municipal development.



The current Jiujiang Mosque.



Hai Family Pan-fried Buns (Haijia Shuijianbao).

In the morning, I ate radish beef offal, rice porridge, radish pan-fried buns, and beef pan-fried buns at Hai Family Pan-fried Buns (Haijia Shuijianbao) at the Fourth Pier. The radish beef offal and radish pan-fried buns were both rich, spicy, and very satisfying, but as a Beijinger, I still prefer the non-spicy beef pan-fried buns.















Liangyilong.

Next to Hai Family Pan-fried Buns is the Fourth Pier branch of Liangyilong, a time-honored halal pastry shop in Jiujiang. People say this might be the original location of the mosque in Jiujiang city. I bought crispy rice crackers (guoba), puffed rice candy (dongmitang), sesame cake (mahonggao), and flaky pastry (fanmaosu) here.

































In the summer of 1937, the Nanjing Nationalist Government moved its offices to Mount Lu (Lushan) south of Jiujiang city. Mount Lu became the summer capital of the Republic of China and was incredibly busy. In July, the Nanjing Nationalist Government held a summer training group on Mount Lu, with over 7,000 officials from various sectors participating in the training. Between June and July, Zhou Enlai and others came to Mount Lu twice to hold the famous Mount Lu negotiations with Chiang Kai-shek. In July, Wang Jingwei and Chiang Kai-shek hosted the Mount Lu Talk, inviting 200 celebrities from all walks of life. Chiang Kai-shek delivered his famous Mount Lu declaration of resistance against Japan. That same year, Liang Yide, a Hui Muslim from Huaining, Anhui, saw a business opportunity and opened the Deyizhai pastry shop on Mount Lu. People say Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Mei-ling often used the Liang family's pastries to entertain guests at that time.



An introduction from the Liangyilong official website.

In 1940, Liang Yide officially opened the Liangyilong shop on Lijiaxiang in Xiyuan, Jiujiang. He paid high wages to hire a Taiwanese pastry chef named Lin Youfu and a Cantonese-style pastry chef named Dai Tianchou to manage the baking. Later, he hired a Taiwanese master named Qiu to handle candy production. Master Qiu used international candy-making techniques to produce dozens of types of fruit and flavored candies at Liangyilong, which made the shop very famous in Jiujiang.



An introduction from the Liangyilong official website.

After the public-private partnership policy, Liangyilong was merged into the Jiujiang Food Factory in 1958. It moved back to the entrance of Xiyuan Lane in 1962. After 1966, the shop sign was smashed, the family assets were confiscated, and Liang Yide was sent to Xiushui for re-education. At the end of 1989, Liang Yide's son, Liang Qibiao, revived the Liangyilong brand. He inherited his father's skills and opened the Liangji Pastry Shop, which eventually grew into a major brand with many franchise stores and automated production lines.





Liang Qirong Pastry Workshop.

Besides Liangyilong, there is another halal pastry shop in Jiujiang called Liang Qirong. It has small shops on Dingguan Road and Dutian Lane. They have a front shop and a back workshop, and the taste feels more personal than the mass-produced items from Liangyilong. I bought osmanthus crisp candy (guihua sutang), osmanthus cloud-slice cake (guihua yunpian gao), osmanthus tea cake (guihua chabing), and mung bean cake (lvdou gao) here.



















Aiping Halal Beef Restaurant.

For lunch at Aiping Halal Beef Restaurant, I had braised yellow catfish (huangyatou), stir-fried beef tripe with celery, and diced lotus root with hot peppers. Huangyatou is what people in Jiangxi call yellow catfish. The ones from Poyang Lake are the most famous, and the meat is incredibly tender and smooth. April and May are the spawning season for yellow catfish. Every fish is full of roe, which is delicious, and the spicy flavor is just right, making it very appetizing. The salty beef tripe (niudu) is great with rice, and the diced lotus root is very spicy, so I have to drink cold water with it. It is so satisfying in the summer.



















Halal snacks on Nanhu Branch Road.

The next morning, I had beef, pan-fried buns (jianbao), radish beef offal (luobo niuza), and scallion oil pancakes (congyoubing) at a halal snack shop on Nanhu Branch Road. Scallion oil pancakes are a specialty of the Hui Muslims in Jiujiang. The radish beef offal is not as spicy as the version at Hai's, which suits my taste better.















Because of my schedule, I missed many shops on this trip to Jiujiang and did not get to eat stir-fried rice noodles (chaofen). If you are interested in halal food in Jiujiang, you should go try it out.





Yangtze River shipping.

During the Republic of China era, Jiujiang Port had six major modern steamship terminals: Nanhua, Jardine, Nissin, Butterfield & Swire, Sanbei, and Ningshao. There were over 1,300 stevedores, and by 1934, the number of dock workers in Jiujiang reached over 3,000.

Today, the Jiujiang cross-river ferry is at Gate 21 at the north end of Lushan North Road. It has operated a route to the Hengbatou Pier in Huangmei County, Hubei Province, across the river since 1940. At first, they used small hand-rowed rafts, then wooden boats, and later they changed to the current iron barges.































On the other side of the ferry is Hengbatou Pier. During the Yangtze River Crossing Campaign in April 1949, a unit of the Eighth Field Army of the People's Liberation Army requisitioned four wooden boats here. Each trip carried 14 people, and it took them seven days and seven nights to successfully transport the troops across the Yangtze River.









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Reposted from the web

Summary: Hankou Hui Muslim Community — Mosques, Food and Lost Streets is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: After the middle of the Ming Dynasty, Hankou town began to grow. Hui Muslims from the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions traveled up the Yangtze River, while those from the Shaanxi and Gansu regions traveled down the Han. The account keeps its focus on Hankou Muslims, Hubei Muslims, China Mosques while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

The formation of the Muslim community in Hankou.

After the middle of the Ming Dynasty, Hankou town began to grow. Hui Muslims from the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions traveled up the Yangtze River, while those from the Shaanxi and Gansu regions traveled down the Han River, all gathering in Hankou for trade and business. By the end of the Ming Dynasty, the number of Hui Muslims settling in Hankou grew, forming the earliest residential area for the community.

Guangyi Bridge Mosque (Guangyiqiao Qingzhensi).

Guangyi Bridge Mosque was first built in 1723 (the first year of the Yongzheng reign). It was burned down in 1900 (the 26th year of the Guangxu reign) and rebuilt in 1905 with funds raised by community elders like Jin Shihe and Jin Dinghe. During the Wuchang Uprising in 1911, the mosque was burned down again. It was repaired in 1916 with donations from the Shaanxi horse caravan group and the Hubei beef butcher guild (Choubang). The main prayer hall was funded entirely by a famous Hui merchant from Shanghai named Jiang Xingjie. It could hold a thousand people for namaz and featured beautiful bracket sets, curved eaves, and carved beams, making it very spectacular.

In 1905, Ma Ganghou, Yu Jingzhai, and others opened a school for Hui children inside the Wanshou Palace Mosque in Hankou. It was later renamed the Hankou Muslim Primary School and moved into the Guangyi Bridge Mosque, offering free enrollment to Hui children. The curriculum focused on religion, supplemented by Chinese language and abacus math, until it closed after the Battle of Wuhan in 1938.

Guangyi Bridge Mosque in the 1864 Map of Wuhan Towns and Cities.



Guangyi Bridge Mosque in the 1877 Map of Streets in Hankou Town, Hubei.



Guangyi Bridge Mosque before its demolition, photographed by Bi Jingshi before 1930. It is now in the collection of the Harvard-Yenching Library.





According to Wang Jianping in Old Photos of Islamic Culture in China's Interior and Frontier, this is Imam Wu Zhengming from Xi'an.



In 1930, the government renovated a large urban area from Wangjiaxiang to Liuduqiao in Hankou. They built new roads centered around the Sun Yat-sen bronze statue on Sanmin Road, which led to the demolition of the original Guangyi Bridge Mosque. Imam Ma Yiting and community elders like Tie Guoliang, Yu Jingzhai, Yang Shouting, and Ma Tingsheng traveled to Shanghai, Nanjing, and the Shaanxi-Gansu-Henan regions to raise funds. With these donations and contributions from local Hui Muslims, they raised 18,000 yuan. They built a three-story brick-and-concrete mosque on the newly constructed Minquan Road, modeled after the Xiaotaoyuan Mosque in Shanghai. Because it was on Minquan Road, it was also called the Minquan Road Mosque. The first floor of the new mosque held a reception room, a water room for washing, and a room for funeral preparations (maiti). The second floor had a room for reciting scriptures and a lecture hall, and the third floor was the main prayer hall.

The Minquan Road Mosque photographed by Bi Jingshi between 1934 and 1935. You can see the sign on the gate that reads: Hankou Branch of the China Islamic Association, Islamic Prayer Hall.





Notice from the Preparatory Committee of the Hankou Branch of the Chinese Islamic Association.

The true faith of the Hui people originated in Mecca (Tianfang).

It has spread to provinces in the interior, passed down through generations by representatives.

Mosques stand like a forest, bringing unity to even the most remote areas.

With the same path, same writing, and same assimilation, the five ethnic groups flourish together.



According to Wang Jianping in Old Photos of Islamic Culture in China's Interior and Frontier, this is the young Imam Ma from the Minquan Road Mosque. Ma Xiaoshun (born in 1924), the former director of the Minquan Road Mosque management committee, recalled that this was Ma Xun, the adopted son of the mosque's head Imam, Ma Yiting. He later followed Imam Ma Yiting to Shanghai and served as the head Imam at the Fuyou Road Mosque in Shanghai for many years during the 1980s.





A small halal snack shop in Hankou.



In 1986, the mosque was renovated and expanded into a five-story building. The first floor is the washroom, the second floor has a living room and a room for reciting scriptures, the third floor is the main prayer hall, the fourth floor is the office for the Wuhan Islamic Association, and the fifth floor is a meeting hall and an additional prayer hall for holidays.

In 2013, the Minquan Road Mosque, which was a designated excellent historical building in Wuhan, was demolished, leaving behind a permanent regret.

The Minquan Road Mosque I photographed in 2012 before it was demolished.



Hualou Street next to the Minquan Road Mosque, one year before the demolition.







The Minquan Road Mosque in October 2014, which became a parking lot after being torn down.



Jiang'an Mosque.

In 1906 (the 32nd year of the Guangxu reign), the Beijing-Hankou Railway officially opened. Many Hui Muslims from Zhoukou, Henan, traveled along the railway to Hankou to escape a drought, settling in the area around the Jiang'an Railway Station, the southernmost point of the line.

In 1918, the Henan Hui Muslims who settled in Liujiamiao built a simple mosque. This was the earliest Liujiamiao Mosque, also known as the Henan Mosque because it was mainly used by people from Henan. Later, when Wu Peifu's army was stationed there, they requisitioned the mosque to feed their horses, so in 1920, everyone had to raise money to buy a small building to use as a mosque.

Between 1934 and 1935, Bi Jingshi took photos of the Liujiamiao Mosque at that time.

Inside the mosque, the person shown is the imam (ahong) at the time, Elder Chang.



Elder Imam Chang.



Elder Imam Chang's eldest son, Imam Chang.



Elder Imam Chang's second son, Younger Imam Chang.





A photo of Elder Imam Chang and Younger Imam Chang together.



Elder Imam Chang and a foreign friend, Mr. G. K. Harris.



Elder Imam Chang shaving his beard.



Elder Imam Chang.



According to Wang Jianping in 'Old Photos of Islamic Culture in China's Inland and Frontier Regions,' an elderly resident named Wei Ruiyun, who lived near the Wuchang Uprising Street Mosque for over 60 years, recalled that this was Imam Ma Shanzhi, who had performed her nikah (marriage contract) when she got married.







Elder Imam Chang and some merchants who came to Hankou from Henan for business.



Merchants who came to do business in Henan at the Liujiamiao Mosque.



The imam of Liujiamiao Mosque.



The imam, community elders, and merchants from Henan on the roof of the mosque, preparing to perform namaz.





Performing namaz on the roof of Liujiamiao Mosque.









Old Imam Chang leads everyone in Jumu'ah prayer inside the main hall of Liujiamiao Mosque.



















A friend (dosti) performs wudu (abdast) on the roof of Liujiamiao Mosque.













After the Battle of Wuhan in 1938, the mosque was damaged by war, and the land was taken for railway expansion, so local Hui Muslims raised money again to buy a new building for the mosque. Since then, the mosque has undergone several major renovations and was officially renamed Jiang'an Mosque. After a major renovation of the main hall in 1986, a second floor was added to the main hall and the north reception room, which caused the foundation to sink and cracks to appear in the walls. In 2005, the original Jiang'an Mosque was demolished to build a new one, and in 2007, a women's Islamic school (qingzhen nvxue) was built next to it.

Jiang'an Mosque as I photographed it in 2013.















A Jumu'ah prayer in 2013.











The study group for middle-aged and elderly people at that time.





Jiang'an Station stopped operating in 2010, and demolition of the surrounding area began immediately. By 2014, the Muslim community around Jiang'an Mosque had been completely razed to the ground and now only exists in history.

In 2015, the community around the mosque was completely razed to the ground.



The former Hui Muslim grocery store has been closed for many years and is now razed to the ground.







The Jiang'an Station sign before it was demolished.



The abandoned station.





The building next to the station was about to be demolished when I photographed it in 2013, and it is now razed to the ground.











An even older century-old station.











A once-luxurious hotel.



A halal restaurant (qingzhen guanzi).

Although the traditional Hui Muslim community in Jiang'an was razed to the ground, Jiang'an Hui Muslims still run halal restaurants in Wuhan.

Fatumei Restaurant on Huangxing Road is a traditional local halal restaurant in Hankou. Owner Li's family are third-generation Hankou Hui Muslims who settled near the Dazhi Railway Station in Hankou during the Republic of China era.

We ordered the most classic Hankou Hui Muslim dish, beef meatball soup (hui niurou yuanzi), as well as sticky rice fish (ciba yu) and fried lotus root sandwiches (zha oujia). Although they are only separated by a river, Hankou Hui Muslims and Wuchang Hui Muslims have different food cultures. Hui Muslims have lived in Wuchang for hundreds of years. While they focus on beef dishes, their diet has also been shaped by local Wuhan influences. Hui Muslims in Hankou mostly moved here from Henan over the last hundred years. Their food culture carries a Central Plains style, which is best seen when comparing the beef meatballs (niurou yuanzi) from both places. Hankou Hui Muslims make their beef meatballs (niurou yuanzi) with pure beef, and their method of stewing the meatballs is also more typical of the Central Plains. When we were eating, they were busy making boxed meals for community workers. The owner said 2020 was a very hard year. After reopening in May, business was very slow. There were few tourists, local Hui Muslims are not used to eating out, their shop is too small for banquets, and the university was locked down so students could not come out to eat. Luckily, their landlord waived three months of rent, and community members helped by often buying boxed meals from them, so they barely managed to keep going.











Pang's Hot Dry Noodles (Pangji reganmian)

We ate hot dry noodles (reganmian), freshly fried savory donuts (mianwo), and egg fermented rice soup (jidan laozao) at Pang's Hot Dry Noodles on Yiyuan Road in Hankou. Pang's is the most famous halal hot dry noodle shop in Wuhan. It has been open for 46 years and is a must-visit spot for Muslims traveling in Wuhan. When I went in 2020, the owner said they would close in 2021 because the rent was high and business was bad that year, so they could no longer keep the business running. I heard a while ago that they reopened under the new name Pang Meiling Hot Dry Noodles.











Freshly made savory donuts (mianwo)







They also sell braised dried tofu (lu dougan), but it was super spicy so we did not dare to eat it.



In 2017, I ate hot dry noodles (reganmian), small knife fish (xiaodaoyu), and beef tripe rice noodles (niudufen) at the Dongting Street shop.









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Reposted from the web

Summary: Claude L. Pickens Jr. Collection: Republican-Era Hui Muslim Documents is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: Claude L. Pickens Jr. was an American missionary who came to China in 1926 and worked mainly in Hankou. The account keeps its focus on Hui Muslims, Islamic Manuscripts, Harvard Yenching while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source.

Claude L. Pickens Jr. was an American missionary who came to China in 1926 and worked mainly in Hankou. He traveled to the Muslim-populated areas of Northwest China twice, in 1933 and 1936, taking many photos and leaving behind valuable records.

Pickens collected many precious documents from Hui Muslims during the Republic of China era, including scripture calligraphy, wall charts, religious calendars, and calligraphy works. He donated them all to the Harvard-Yenching Library in 1984, where they were digitized and displayed on the library's official website.

Most of these documents came from the Muslim Book and Newspaper Press (Qingzhen Shubao She) on Niujie Street in Beiping. The Muslim Book and Newspaper Press was founded in the early years of the Republic of China by Imam Ma Kuilin of Niujie. In the 1920s and 1930s, it printed various scripture textbooks and scholarly works in a shop north of Guang'anmen Street, which were sold all over the country. After Imam Ma Kuilin passed away in 1940, his fourth son, Ma Zhongdao, continued to run the business until it was merged into the Xuanwu Xinhua Bookstore in 1956. After 1966, all the books and records from the Muslim Book and Newspaper Press that had been handed over to the Xuanwu Xinhua Bookstore went missing, and the collection held by Ma Zhongdao himself was forced to be burned by his own hands. Because of this, the collection of books and records from the Muslim Book and Newspaper Press held by Pickens has become the most precious material available.

Official website: library.harvard.edu/collections/rev-claude-l-pickens-jr-collection-muslims-china

The book "Selected Fine Prints of Hui Muslim Materials from the Republic of China Era" provides a detailed introduction to these documents, but unfortunately, due to layout and paper limitations, the images in the book are not printed clearly enough.



A wall scroll (zhongtang) of calligraphy finely produced by the Beiping Niujie Muslim Book and Newspaper Press.



Inna-hu alimun bi-zat al-sudur, finely produced by the Beiping Niujie Muslim Book and Newspaper Press.



A quote from Caliph Umar: Kafa bi-al-mawt wai zan, wa kafa bi-al-dahr tafarruqan.

Death is enough as a warning, and the world is enough as a separation (from Allah).



A wall scroll, printed by the Beiping Niujie Muslim Book and Newspaper Press. According to teacher Wang Qifei, this is the work of Imam Li Chaozhen or Li Shouzhen from Cangzhou.





A wall scroll featuring scripture calligraphy. Guide us to the straight path (1:6), with a seal that reads "Xuanjing." According to teacher Mu Ning, the author is likely Fa Jingxuan from Jinan. Fa Jingxuan was a famous educator and one of the founders of the Chengda Teachers' School.





The scripture couplets on both sides of the wall scroll also come from the Fatiha.







A color-printed set of the three-piece incense set (luping sanshi) from the Beijing Niujie Muslim Book and Newspaper Press. From right to left are the teapot, incense box, incense burner, chopstick vase, and flower vase.







Ali's sword, the first print says published by Beijing Niujie Muslim Book and Newspaper Press, and the second print was changed to "Beiping."





A color-printed Basmala (tasimi), published by the Niujie Halal Bookstore in Beiping.



The Sea of Fury Ship (nuhai chuan), published by the Niujie Halal Bookstore in Beijing.





The Praise of the Prophet on the Sea (haishui zansheng), printed by the Niujie Halal Bookstore in Beiping, features 34 lines of dua written within the waves.



Scripture characters on red paper, printed by the Niujie Halal Bookstore in Beiping.

Basmala (tasimi).











All praise is due to Allah (written eight times).

















Printed by the Niujie Halal Bookstore in Beiping, the Prophet's Last Words (guisheng cishi yiyan) exist in 1925 and 1932 editions and depict the appearance of the Prophet Muhammad.





Halal Miaoxiangge Star and Moon brand orchid perfume, made by Li Peilin, with the main factory located at No. 17 Santuanqiao Dongting Alley, outside Chongwenmen, Beiping.





A halal marriage certificate, dated November 25, 1922, published by the Nanjing Halal Board and the Daoyi Society, with the printing plate kept at the Tangzi Street Mosque in Nanjing.











Essentials of the Right Path (zhengdao genyuan jiaotiao zhiyao), a public notice from the mosque outside the south gate of Liuhe, Nanjing, compiled by Ma Youheng Mingsanshi of Sichuan. It describes various actions that destroy, harm, or help one's faith (imani).



A Simple Explanation of the Essentials of Halal Faith, published in the eighth month of the 31st year of the Guangxu reign (1905) by Ma Dengshou and other students of the Hujia Mosque. Hujia Mosque is located in Longhu Village, Xindu District, Chengdu, Sichuan, and was founded in 1738. The Hu family's ancestral home was in Weinan, Shaanxi, and they moved to Sichuan between the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty.



Book catalog of the Beiping Chengda Normal School Publishing Department, May 25, 1934.





Price list for various Islamic scriptures sold by the Zhenxue Society in the provincial capital of Yunnan. Sold on behalf of the society by Ma Jun Renqing, manager of the Lihechang Leather Store at No. 133 Shuncheng Shangjie, outside the Great South Gate of the provincial capital of Yunnan.



Catalog of books from the Beijing Niujie Halal Bookstore.



The 99 Names of Allah and the eight gates of Paradise, source unknown.



Chart of the Fifty Generations of Light (wushi dai chuanguang tu), printed by the Niujie Halal Bookstore in Beijing. It includes the lineage of fifty generations from the Prophet Adam to the Prophet Muhammad. The prophets in the central large circle are Adam (Adan), Noah (Nuha), Abraham (Yibulaximai), Moses (Musa), David (Dawudai), Jesus (Ersa), and the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Muhammaidai).





Printed by the Zungutang Lithographic Press in Tianjin.



Attention, Muslims.



The Islamic ritual washing (wudu) wall chart and prayer wall chart were compiled by Zhang Hongtao from Dingxing, performed by Ma Zhongdao from Beiping, and published by the Beiping Niujie Mosque Newspaper and Book Agency.







A promotional flyer for the True Mirror Garden (Zhenjing Huayuan) from the Beiping Niujie Mosque Newspaper and Book Agency.



4. Islamic Calendar.

In 1946, the Religious Affairs Committee of the Yunnan Provincial Branch of the China Islamic Association compiled and printed the Islamic monthly start dates, festivals, fasting, and prayer schedule.



Published by the Yuehua Newspaper Agency in 1946.





Printed by the Beiping Niujie Mosque Newspaper and Book Agency in 1936.



Printed by the Beiping Niujie Mosque Newspaper and Book Agency in 1946.



Printed by the Beiping Niujie Mosque Newspaper and Book Agency in 1948.



Printed on behalf of the Jiyixuan studio on Hualou Street in Hankou in 1942.

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