Yuen Long Old Market
元朗舊墟
1685年，錦田鄉人鄧文蔚考取進士，並獲授浙江龍游縣知縣，為本港清代第一位進士。鄧文蔚獲朝廷封地後，在南邊圍與西邊圍之間設墟，據《新安縣志》載，元朗有名「圓朗墟」，即現時的「元朗舊墟」。墟市以農曆三、六、九為墟期，由於當時旁有「元朗涌」可以出海，因此在墟市期間，伶仃島、外國及內地商人亦會在此進行交易，可謂清代早期對外的重要通商基地之一。墟市設有東門和南門，內有三條街，分別為長盛街、利益街和酒街，而古蹟最多的長盛街更被命名為「滿清一條街」。墟內街道兩旁排列了兩層高的青磚房屋，當中有押店、酒廠、廟宇和客棧等......
In 1685, a man named Tang Man Wai from Kam Tin passed the imperial examination. He was appointed as the magistrate of Longyou County, Zhejiang, becoming the first imperial scholar of the Qing Dynasty in Hong Kong. After being granted land by the court, Tang set up a market between Nam Pin Wai and Sai Pin Wai, which was recorded in the “Gazetteer of Xin’an County” as “Un Long Hui,” now known as “Yuen Long Old Market.”
The market was held on the third, sixth, and ninth days of the lunar month, and because there was a nearby “Yuen Long Chung” that could lead to the sea, merchants from Lin Tin Island, foreign countries, and the mainland would trade here during the market period. It was one of the essential early trading bases for foreign trade in the Qing Dynasty.
The market had an East Gate and a South Gate, with three streets: Cheung Shing Street, Lee Yick Street, and Wine Street. Cheung Shing Street has the most historic buildings and was named “The Manchu Street”. Besides, two-story green brick buildings were arranged on both sides, including pawn shops, distilleries, temples, and guesthouses......
由於交通及地權壟斷等問題，新墟市的建起令舊墟自此慢慢走向衰落，許多店舖關門改作住宅或工場。然而，墟市內許多兩層高的樓房未拆，格局仍然保存，當中逾 30幢屬歷史建築，舊墟至今也已有三百年多年的歷史。隨著時代發展及順應居民需求，墟內的房屋建築逐步改建及遷拆，展現不同時代的建築特色。
Due to transportation and land ownership monopolies, the construction of the new market led to the gradual decline of the old market, and many shops closed down. They were converted into residential or industrial properties.
However, many of the two-story high buildings in the market were not demolished, and the layout was still preserved, with over 30 of them being classified as historical buildings.
Yuen Long Old Market has a long history of over 300 years. With the development of the times and in response to the needs of residents, the buildings inside the market have gradually been renovated and relocated, showcasing the architectural features of different eras.
Features 特色：
Architecture 建築
墟內建築物多數在清代建立，建築材料以青磚為主。不少建築物的門口使用三道門設計，包括腳門，趟櫳，和木門。以往，只有富戶會把青磚打磨平滑，令磚與磚之間的夾縫幼細，外牆亦因此顯得工整，並於屋簷下加添壁畫、木雕、石雕、磚雕等裝飾。走過舊墟，破爛的清式舊屋依稀可見屋簷下的及磚雕等裝飾。此外，建築格局主要為前舖後居（前方為鋪面，後方為工場或居所）或上居下舖。墟內經營不同行業， 可分為零售業、小型製造業、典當業、客棧等。
Most buildings in the old market were built in the Qing Dynasty, with green bricks as the primary building material. Many buildings have a design with three doors, including a foot door, a folding door, and a wooden door. Previously, only wealthy families would polish the green bricks smoothly, making the gaps between the bricks fine and the exterior walls appear neat and decorations such as murals, wood carvings, stone carvings, and brick carvings were added under the eaves. Walking through the old market, the worn-out Qing-style houses can still be seen with decorative elements under the eaves. In addition, the building layout is mainly “store in front and residence in the back” (the front is a shop, the back is a workshop or residence) or “upstairs living, downstairs store”. Numerous shops in the market operate in various industries, roughly divided into retail, small-scale manufacturing, pawnbroking, guesthouses, etc.
建築使用青磚，屋簷下可見有壁畫裝飾
Uses of Green Bricks and decoration under the eaves
「上居下鋪」式建築
“upstairs living, downstairs store”
Gate with craved patterns 通花鐵閘
穿梭在元朗舊墟內的街道上，你會發現不少於五、六十年代的香港流行的通花鐵閘。最早時人們使用的是「欖閘」的菱形鐵閘，由於鐵枝交叉縫隙大，因此容易遭到偷竊。後來，商戶改成用「板閘」，由鐵板裝嵌而成，由於大多舊式店舖以「前舖後居」的方式經營，在窗戶及冷氣機尚未普及的情況下，他們便把鐵板鑿通，刻上店家的鋪名，並在鐵閘上雕刻花紋。拉上閘門後，通花的位置為店舖保持空氣流通，又有透光及美觀的效果。由於新舖的名字及門口尺寸不同，因此鐵閘很難重用，導致通花鐵閘開始逐漸式微。
As you wander through the streets of the old market in Yuen Long, you will notice many gate with craved patterns that were popular in Hong Kong in the 1950s and 1960s. Initially, people used “collapsible gate” with large gaps between the crossing iron rods, making them less secure and more susceptible to theft. Later, merchants began using “iron plates”. Since most of the old shops operated in a “store in front and residence in the back” manner and there were no windows or air conditioning, they would drill through the iron plates, carve the shop’s name on them, and engrave patterns on the upper half of the iron gate. After pulling down the gate, the position of the floral patterns would serve as an air vent, providing ventilation, lighting, and an aesthetically pleasing appearance. As new shops’ names and door sizes differed, it became difficult to reuse the iron gates, leading to a gradual decline in the popularity of gate with craved patterns.