The Xiancan Ancestral Temple, colloquially known as Canhua Hall or Canhuang Hall or where the Association of Silk Industry in Shengze locates, is in the south of Wulong Road, Shengze Town, Wuzhong District, Suzhou City. It was listed as a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level by the State Council of China in 2013.
The Xiancan Ancestral Temple is named for silkworm god Leizu. It covers an area of 2701 square meters with a building area of 1215 square meters. There are three courtyards along the main axis. The first one is a gatehouse with three arches, one of which is bigger while the other two are smaller. There is a single eave at both the top and bottom. On the top of the middle arch, a vertical tablet reading “Xiancan Ancestral Temple” was suspended on it, while on the east is a “Zhi Yun(weaving the cloud)” and west a “Xiu Jin(stitching the brocade)”. On both sides of the gatehouse, there are two splay walls of horoscope bricks with a width of 3.4m respectively; while the bricks of bracket at the top are carved with Ruyi(Good luck) images. At the top of the inside gatehouse, there are caissons and bracket set. Walking pass the small courtyard behind the entrance, there is a new theatrical stage connecting with the eastern and western buildings. The third section is Canhuang Hall with a gable roof. In the middle of the shrine altar, there are three statues covered with gold, namely Emperor Xuanyuan(Emperor Huangdi), Leizu and Emperor Shennong.
Between the main hall and theatrical stage, there is a stone square with an area of 450 square meters. A side hall with two floors is located on the east with five-house width, which was used to be a store and exchange place. The first three sections on the western axis are new-built halls, and now they are the silk museum of Wujiang. Behind these halls, there is the courtyard. And the fourth section is a congress hall with two floors and three rooms.
