An exhibition in one of the rooms at the Mandarin’s House with photos, paintings and sketches with texts compiled from interviews of a dozen of the building’s former tenants look back at how life was when it became a real-life scene from the classic 1973 Hong Kong film “The House of 72 Tenants”.
Built in 1869, the Mandarin’s House, or “Zheng’s Mansion” in Chinese, is a 19th-century style residential edifice covering an area of 4,000 square metres. Originally, it had 60 rooms overlooking the Inner Harbour and the hills across the river. The residence was owned by Zheng Wenrui, Zheng Guangying’s father.
The government took over the Mandarin’s House in 2001 and restored the mansion, and in 2005, the complex was recognised as one of the 22 UNESCO heritage sites of the Historic Centre of Macau. It was only in 2010 that the mansion was officially opened to the public.
This photo, taken by Lei Chiu Vang from his “Visit to the Past” collection, shows the former residence of Zheng Guanying in the 1970s. Photos: Cultural Affairs Bureau
This photo shows the main courtyard at the Mandarin’s House yesterday. Photo: Iong Tat Choi
