Xuechi Hutong--Baby it is cold inside

Xuechi, "the Snow Pool," is a pretty romantic name for an icehouse, and today that name maintains over at Xuechi Hutong, which formerly was used to store ice and perishables for use in the Forbidden City. Originally there were six warehouses, all of which were half underground and each the size of a train car, but today only No. 5 and No. 6 remain and are protected as cultural relics under the administration of Beihai Park.

Beihai Park's deputy director Shi Zonghai said that those icehouses were restored three times, and they were still in use until 1972 after an amazing 399 years of service. Now the two cultural relics are carefully under watch 24 hours a day, lest any young thrill-seekers attempt to break in and see the place where the emperors used to get their ice. "The line is narrow, and many residents live there, so it's not suitable for massive visitors," said Shi. "For that reason the icehouses are currently not opened to the public."

The icehouses were built in 1573 during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). Shi said that the ice was gathered from the lake in the park during the winter, and put into storage so it could be used to preserve foods like meat, fruits and vegetables. In order to keep the temperatures low, the icehouses were built about four meters into the ground. No.6 is about 25 meters long and 10 meters wide, a comparatively large one in this lane. As soon as I stepped in the warehouse I felt as cold as if several air conditioners were pointed right at me. Tian Huili from the office department of the park said the temperatures inside the icehouses stay at around 16 C during the summer, so it's like a giant icebox even when outside the city is more like a giant oven.

Understandably, ice was closely connected with social class, and the icehouses in this lane were used to provide ice only for the emperors and concubines in the Forbidden City. Other icehouses in Deshengmen were used to store the ice for high officials like prime ministers with the government. Ordinary folks were pretty much out of luck, as having a place like this to store food was an unimaginable luxury.

In 1916, the icehouses were privately owned and responsible for providing ice for the Republic government as well as the royal families who remained in the Forbidden City. Later they were used to store food for the shops nearby, and five of the six icehouses were still extant after 1949. But now only two icehouses are under protection as cultural relics, while the others have either been destroyed, or have decayed to the point where they're almost unrecognizable.

Although the icehouses' function has faded to a mere historical novelty, the story here has been passed down for generations. Kang Yugui is a middle-aged resident, but he's heard vivid stories about the hutong from its older residents. "After the ice was picked up from the park, the huge pieces were shaped into around 1-meter square cubes with iron tools that looked like files," said Kang. The most difficult part of the process was pulling the heavy cubes across the lane into the storage houses. Kang said there used to be a well in the middle of the lane that was used for water to lubricate the ice and make it easier to move. "Straw mats were placed on the stairs inside the icehouses so the ice cubes could get in without being broken," he said. Today I could still find the straw mats inside icehouse No.6. Tian from the office department pointed out that this area was an official zone and was off-limits for ordinary people. "Some of the locals today are actually descendants of the icehouse keepers," she said.

Xuechi Hutong is not alone in its icy background. Although most of the other icehouses were destroyed, you can still visit one that remains in Gongjian Hutong and has been turned into a Chinese restaurant called Bingjiao, or "Ice House" (see Keep cool like Cixi, August 20, 2010).