The Courtyard Institute is located in a traditional “sìhéyuàn” in the heart of Beijing. These courtyards, in english sometimes referred to as quadrangles, are a historical type of residence in China and is most famously found in the hutongs of Beijing.
The name “siheyuan” (四合院）literally means a courtyard surrounded by houses on all four sides. Our courtyard however, is a little different from the traditional layout because the main backyard is surrounded by houses to the North, East and West and a wall to the South. The wall to the South is part of the wall of the former imperial city of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, signified by the yellow glazed tiles on top of the wall.
Layout and Photographs of the Courtyard:
The siheyuan includes two courtyards and 5 buildings covering an area of 370 square meters.
The large backyard holds our main hall, where most our functions and workshops are held, the East room (a bedroom which can be rented), and our office and kitchen are on the West side of the courtyard. Inside the backyard is also a wooden pavilion, sometimes used for small tea ceremonies, musical performances and shadow puppet shows, and a sun terrace, from where one can overlook the old tiled roofs of the adjacent courtyards and glimpse the large pagoda on top of the Jingshan Park or coal hill as it is sometimes referred to.
The main hall holds up to 50 people for lectures and functions and can seat up to 35 people for lunch or dinner.
The courtyard and its facilities as well as additional services (cook, ayi, tea ceremony, traditional music performance) can be booked for your private or corporate events. If you would like to know more about our rental services follow this link: Courtyard Rental
