Manchester Chinatown, Chinese archway, 46 Faulkner St, Manchester, England, UK, M1 4FH - Arch of Chinatown, built 1987


One of Chinatown's most noticeable landmarks is the archway on Faulkner Street. The paifang, underneath which road traffic passes, was specially built in China and shipped over in three containers. Construction commenced over Christmas 1986 and was completed by Easter 1987, a year after the city of Manchester was twinned with Wuhan. The structure was a gift from Manchester City Council to the Chinese community, and is adorned with dragons and phoenixes. After many years exposed to the elements, the arch required restoration work to be undertaken; netting was wrapped around a part of the structure to prevent further tiles from dislodging. The Manchester Chinatown Community Group undertook a series of charity events, including a dry land dragon boat race in June 2012. In early 2013 the archway was repaired by Manchester and Cheshire Construction Company. It is the only one in Europe and regarded as more decorative than the one in San Francisco. Designed and built by a team of engineers from Peking, it is decorated with ceramics, lacquer, paint and gold leaf.


Size: 5134px × 3542px
Location: 46 Faulkner St, Manchester, England, UK, M1 4FH
Photo credit: © Tony Smith / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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