Anchang Ancient Town

Since the Guangxu reign, Renchang has let thousands of sauce vats ferment naturally in the sun, keeping a listed intangible heritage craft alive.

Shaoxing was famed for supplying advisers to officials nationwide, and this museum vividly explains the Ming and Qing private-secretary system, its culture and its statecraft.

From the mid-Qing to the Republican era, Suikang served as a financial hub for trade on the eastern Zhejiang canal, with its vault, counting room and exchange counters preserved.

Arcaded streets run for miles along Anchang's river, and each twelfth lunar month the banks fill with hanging sausages and soy-cured duck for a festive mood.

In 1892, Shaoxing native Xu Renchang founded Renchang Soy Sauce Garden in Anchang, continuing a traditional brewing craft.

Anchang is an important home of Shaoxing advisor culture, whose local social history is preserved through its Ming–Qing water-town architecture and advisor museum.