Ancient Drum Tower: A Six-Century Guardian of Old Fucheng

Travel — Visiting & Exploring Hainan

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Patrick Quinn

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The Ancient Drum Tower in Fucheng, Haikou, is a six-century-old structure built in 1372 during the Ming Dynasty's Hongwu reign by commander Wang You as part of the defensive walls of Qiongzhou Prefecture — Hainan's historic political, cultural, and military capital established in 972.

Originally known as the Chao Tower, it was rebuilt in 1788 by Qing official Wu Dian and renamed the Wenming Tower, featuring a stone archway over ten meters long topped by a timber pavilion bearing inscriptions including "Magnificent View of Hainan" and "Civilization of Qidian."

Situated at the southern end of Drum Tower Street near Zhongjie Road and the Qiongtai Fudi complex, it served as a lookout for floods and enemy threats, a ceremonial gathering point for officials, and a favored spot for scholars, and while only fragments of the original four-kilometer-long, nine-meter-high defensive walls remain alongside the east and west gates, the tower itself endures amid urban growth and weathering as one of Haikou's most tangible links to its ancient past.

Full Details Here: Discover the Ancient Drum Tower of Fucheng Haikou: A Historic Landmark

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Posted : 05/12/2025 12:11 pm