Coffin Village visit, 2014/04/02
Photos from a visit to Coffin Village, a small village with a long history.
Coffin Village is a small hamlet in the hills of Fangshan District, in the southwest corner of Beijing Municipality.
As well as a more modern precinct, the village contains some 100 old courtyard houses that date back to the Ming and Qing dynasties – some courtyards derelict, some courtyards still tidy and lived in.
On this trip we took a slow tour of the village, poking our noses into the old courtyards and climbing up into the hills behind the village for a better view.

We helped a grandma with the grinding work.

Peeking through an old door.

One of many grinding stones in Coffin Village.

Old-style Chinese characters on a flagstone.

Walking through the village and past an old tree.

This is the first gate of three in the courtyard of a wealthy business man from the old times.

The villagers have built a platform that gives views of the whole village.

We walked through the alleys and lanes of the village.

Two farmers were heading for their fields.

A view of part of the village, from a higher point.

Another scene in the village.

Old and delicate paintings on the eaves of one of the old courtyard houses.