Cheng Fa House – The destruction of our architectural heritage

‘Cheng Fa House’（成發居）is situated close to the train station in Yingge Dist., New Taipei City. It was built in 1919, in the early years of Japanese Emperor Taishō (日治大正) era and is a classic example of architecture from that period. The house, which is beautifully crafted with red bricks and tiles, was the former residence of the distinguished Chen Fa (陳發), who used the homophonic characters Cheng Fa – which signify success and completion in Chinese - hence ‘Cheng Fa House’（成發居). The building was carefully designed and built by the finest craftsmen of the time, with arched doors and pavilions utilizing the famous red bricks of Qingshui. With archway features and parapets all displaying a distinctive foreign quality, the building is a wonderful example of early Dutch-style architecture.

The floor of this typically asymmetrical building with 5 big halls and 4 deep entrances is laid with red bricks fired in the Taiwan Renga Brickworks -"TR brick"-, produced in Songshan District – under the area’s old name Xikou, hence ‘Xikou brick’. Bricks from this factory were of high quality and considered the best grade of brick in their day, making ‘Cheng Fa House’ an important piece of architecture heritage. ‘Cheng Fa House’ became a model symbolizing Yingge, and its unique style later became a common sight everywhere. After ‘Cheng Fa House’ fell into disrepair, the owners showed no willingness to preserve it and the government stepped in with a conservation plan. However, after the government failed to raise funds to cover the asking price of NTD71m (approx. US2.5m), the owners became impatient and finally commissioned estate agents to sell the property. With no interest in the preservation of cultural assets, the new owners used the most convenient and economical means of construction, demolishing everything except an empty symbolic archway as a sign of ‘conservation’. In reality ‘Cheng Fa House’ already lies in waste, arousing the concern of all those involved in the preservation of culture and history.

PeoPo 公民新聞

Cheng Fa House – The destruction of our architectural heritage
URL: http://www.peopo.org/news/100555

(以下是中文對照)

▇ 成發居 ▇古蹟拆除事件簿_2012 ( jwo )

「成發居」位在新北市鶯歌火車站附近， 建於西元1919年， 是日治大正初年具有代表性的建築物，成發居是鶯歌鎮望族陳發的舊居，取其諧音而為「成發居」， 是精緻的紅磚瓦厝。整幢建築由當時的著名師傅所精心設計，以拱門造型的亭仔腳是由清水紅磚砌成， 富有早期荷蘭建築風格， 番仔樓牌樓為特色， 及女兒牆也相當具有特色。

是五開間、四進的不對稱建築， 地上鋪的台灣煉瓦株式會社所燒製的「TR磚」， 產自松山故稱「錫口磚」， 選用之建材十分考究，頗具參考價值。以其造型圖騰象徵鶯歌「成發居」圖騰造型圖案處處可見 。「成發居」古厝年久失修，業主無保存意願， 縣府打算價購保存，卻因籌不到價購的7100萬元經費。 業主不耐久候，委託房屋仲介出售。未善盡保護文化資產， 以省錢方便的施工方式，全部清除再象徵性重建古蹟牌樓， 「成發居」其實已經名存實廢，引起文史界矚目。 

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