{{coord|22.497837|114.152737|display=title}} {{Use Hong Kong English|date=April 2019}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2019}}
[[Image:Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall.JPG|300px|thumb|Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall. Front view. The lower building on the left is housing a kitchen.]] [[File:Inside Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall.JPG|thumb|Interior of Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall.]] [[File:P2-3910.jpg|thumb|Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall. Side view.]] [[File:Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall 05.JPG|thumb|Relief at the front of the building.]] {{Chinese |t=鄧鬆嶺祠堂 |y=Dahng sūng líhng chìh tóng |j=Dang6 sung1 ling5 ci4 tong2 }}
The '''Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall''' ({{zh|t=鄧松嶺祠堂}}) is the main [[Ancestral Hall|ancestral hall]] of the [[Tang Clan]] of [[Lung Yeuk Tau]] and one of the largest ancestral halls in Hong Kong.<ref name="declared">[[Antiquities and Monuments Office]]: [[Declared monuments of Hong Kong|Declared monuments]]: [http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/Monument/en/monuments_65.php Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall]</ref> It is still used for worship and celebrations of traditional festivals and ceremonies, as well as a meeting place for the Tang Clan of Lung Yeuk Tau.<ref name="LCSD">[[Leisure and Cultural Services Department]]: [http://www.epd.gov.hk/eia/register/profile/latest/dir105.pdf Major Repair to Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall, Lung Yeuk Tau, Fanling], August 2004</ref> It is located in between [[Lo Wai, Lung Yeuk Tau|Lo Wai]] and [[Tsz Tong Tsuen (North District)|Tsz Tong Tsuen]] in Lung Yeuk Tau, [[Fanling]], [[North District, Hong Kong|North District]], in the [[New Territories]] of Hong Kong.<ref name="HeritageTrail">[[Antiquities and Monuments Office]]: [[Lung Yeuk Tau Heritage Trail]]: [http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/Monument/en/trails_lung1.php?tid=6 Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall]</ref>
==History== The ancestral hall was built in 1525 in memory of the founding ancestor, Tang Chung Ling ({{zh|t=鄧松嶺|labels=no}}) (1303-1387),<ref name="declared"/><ref name="LCSD"/> the sixth generation descendant of the [[Chinese clan|clan]].{{reference needed|date=March 2016}} From the 1940s to the 1950s, the Ancestral Hall was also used as a village school.<ref name="EMB">[[Education and Manpower Bureau]]: [http://cd1.edb.hkedcity.net/cd/pshe/resources/pingshan_lungyeuktau/en_us/lungyeuktau/tangchungling.htm Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall]</ref> Until the mid-1990s, women were traditionally not allowed to enter the Ancestral Hall.<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Jaya Gopan|first1= Temily |last2= Li|first2= Zhao|last3=Zhuang |first3=Shuting |date= 2012|title= Modern Traditional Village Life in Hong Kong: The Case of Lung Yeuk Tau Village|url= http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/ant/hka/vol6/HKA_JAYA.pdf|journal= The Hong Kong Anthropologist|publisher= Hong Kong Anthropological Society|volume= 6|page=15 |oclc= 29371328}}</ref>
==Description== Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall is a three-hall building with two spacious internal courtyards. An annex, which serves as a kitchen is attached to the right of the building (eastern side).<ref name="LCSD"/><ref name="scientific">{{cite book |last1=Mak|first1= Michael Y.|last2= So|first2= Albert T.|date= 2015|title=Scientific Feng Shui for the Built Environment: Theories and Applications |publisher= [[City University of Hong Kong Press]]|pages= 132–142|isbn=9789629372361}}</ref> The "dong chung" is placed at the central hall.<ref name="HeritageTrail"/>
The rear hall is divided into three chambers. The central chamber houses the [[ancestral tablet]]s of the ancestors of the clan including the ancestral tablets of the Song princess and her husband Wai-Kap whose posthumous title was Fu Ma ({{zh|t=附馬|labels=no}}) Tang Wai-Kap (husband of a princess). Their ancestral tablets were elaborately carved with dragon heads, which distinguished them from the others.<ref name="HeritageTrail"/> The chamber to the left is dedicated to the ancestors who had made significant contributions to the clan or those who achieved high ranks in the imperial court. The chamber to the right, on the other hand, is for the righteous members of the clan, one of whom is Tang Si-meng,<ref name="HeritageTrail"/> a brave servant who saved the life of his master. In the late 16th century, he was kidnapped with his master. Claiming to be the son of his master, he volunteered to be detained by the kidnappers in exchange for the release of his master to raise ransom. After the departure of his master, he jumped into the sea and sacrificed himself. He was awarded the posthumous title of "Loyal Servant" and worshiped in this hall.{{reference needed|date=March 2016}}
The whole building is decorated with fine wood carvings, polychrome plaster mouldings, and murals of auspicious motifs.<ref name="declared"/>
==Conservation== The Hall has been renovated a number of times, but the structure did not change much. A significant renovation was carried out in 1921, and a major one in 1990-1992.<ref name="EMB"/> The Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall was [[Declared monuments of Hong Kong|declared a monument]] in November 1997.<ref name="declared"/> It is located along the [[Lung Yeuk Tau|Lung Yeuk Tau Heritage Trail]].<ref name="HeritageTrail"/>
==See also== * [[Tang Ancestral Hall (Ha Tsuen)]], a declared monument * [[Tang Ancestral Hall (Ping Shan)]], a declared monument
==References== {{reflist|30em}}
==External links== {{Commonscat-inline|Tang Chung Ling Ancestral Hall}}
{{North District, Hong Kong}}
[[Category:Ancestral shrines in China]] [[Category:Chinese folk religion in Hong Kong]] [[Category:Lung Yeuk Tau]] [[Category:Declared monuments of Hong Kong]]