Evaluation of Preservation and Adaptive Reuse of Historic Villages in Scenic Area of China: A Case Study of Amanfayun in Hangzhou, Zhejiang

The recent economic development of the 1990’s in China, including increased foreign trade and investment, has brought about an upheaval change of physical, cultural and social conditions in rural China. And the large amount of demolition and reconstruction of historic villages put a severe challenge in preserving traditional rural heritages of China. The historic villages in scenic areas, especially due to their unique cultural and natural resources, typically became the first targets of modern transformation and bedrock for economic development. By focusing on several restoration and adaptive reuse cases of historic villages, especially the case of Amanfayun within the Lingyin Scenic Area, in Hangzhou. This paper reviews and analyzes the evolution features and current conditions in preservation and reuse of historic villages. It also summarizes the contradictions between “village” and “scenery,” and proposes that the public sector as well as the villagers’ autonomy play an important role in fostering a sustainable and balanced development of historic villages in the scenic areas of China.