Hsinchu Jingyeyuan

Completed in 1902 in a traditional Minnan architectural style as a private women’s zhaitang (齋堂), or fasting hall, of the Longhua (龍華) branch of Zhaijiao (齋教). It was located on the estate of the prominent Hsinchu patriarch Zheng Rulan (鄭如蘭), whose wife Chen Run (陳潤) lived and practiced here rather than commute to Xiangshan Yishan Hall on the coast. The hall later became an important Buddhist outpost on the north side of Hsinchu, absorbing Japanese and Western decorative influences across successive renovations. It was provisionally listed as a city monument but heritage status was revoked after landowners disputed the scope of the project.