The Old Residence of Guo Moruo is situated
at No 18 West Street, Qianhai, Xicheng District, Beijing.
Guo Moruo was a famous writer, poet,
historian and public activist in China, who also served as former vice-chairman of the Standing Committee
of the Ninth National People's Congress (NPC) of the People's Republic of China
(PRC) and former vice-chairman of the National Committee of Chinese People's
Political Consultative Conference. Guo lived at the residence from October 1963
to June 1978.
Originally a garden belonging to He Shen, a
corrupt official during the reign of Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty
(1644-1911), the site later served as the stables of Prince Yixin's residence
during the reign of Xianfeng and Tongzhi.
The existing residence is a large quadrangle. The
five rooms in the north were used separately as Guo's reception room, work room and
study. There are three side rooms in the east and the west with winding corridors
all around. The rooms in the backyard were where his wife, Yu Liqun, did
painting and calligraphy, and lived. Currently, at the old residence, a lot of
cultural relics, like Guo's handwriting, manuscripts and books, are
preserved.