Shek Pik
Encyclopedia
Shek Pik is an area located along the southwestern coast of Lantau Island
, Hong Kong
. When the Shek Pik Reservoir
was built, villages at Shek Pik were demolished and the villagers were relocated to other parts of Lantau Island and to Tsuen Wan
. Below the dam of the reservoir is Shek Pik Prison.
, which was completed in 1963. Before the construction of the reservoir, the valley was settled by several villages and most of the valley floor and the foothills were occupied by terraced paddy field
s. The southern part of Shek Pik is facing the South China Sea
and features three small bays. From West to East: Tai Long Wan (大浪灣), Chung Hau (涌口) and Tung Wan (東灣; lit. "eastern bay").
from Ma Tau Wai
in Kowloon
accompanied the last two young emperors
to Lautau Island and finally settled in Shek Pik to avoid the Mongol invasion at the end of Southern Song (1127–1279). Based on the review of historic documents, the existence of village settlements at Shek Pik can be traced back to the Ming Dynasty
(1368–1644), although the area may have been settled earlier. The villages were largely self-sufficient farming and coastal fishing communities. The main village, Shek Pik Wai (石壁圍; lit. "the walled village
of Shek Pik), was located near the head of the main valley. A populous place in the mid-19th century, its population had declined to 363 inhabitants by the time of the 1911 Hong Kong Colony census, and numbered 202 in 1957. Fan Pui Village (墳背村) had 59 inhabitants at each count. The villages of Shek Pik Valley - Shek Pik, Fan Pui, Kong Pui (崗貝) and the hamlet of Hang Tsai (坑仔) - were demolished and cleared to allow construction of the Shek Pik Reservoir. A total of about 260 people were resettled as a consequence. Most of the villagers of Shek Pik Village moved into five-storey apartment blocks in the urban Shek Pik New Village (石碧新村) in Tsuen Wan
. Most of the villagers of Fan Pui moved to a new village nearby, Tai Long Wan Tsuen (大浪灣村) at Tai Long Wan, Shek Pik. Some families from both villages moved to a row of houses near Mui Wo
Ferry Pier.
The villagers of Fan Pui had chosen to move to the nearby new rural village of Tai Long Wan Tsuen in order to continue farming. Remodeling long abandoned fields allowed to provide them with about the same acreage of rice fields
near the new village. Tai Long Wan had a population of about 120 people in 1970. By 1983, with the younger villagers moving to the city, the population had declined to 22 and most of the farming activity had ceased.
from the neolithic age were found by Chen Kung-chiek in Shek Pik in 1939 when the local villagers told him there was an engraved carving on the upper part of the beach and to the west of Tung Wan. There was the second carving found on the opposite side of the valley. It has been split into two parts by lightning and the rock is now lying face down so the carving can not be seen.
According to the local villagers, there is the third carving further up the valley. This carving, (later called "the upper Shek Pik Rock Carving" to distinguish it from the one found on the Shek Pik Beach) was found on a steep slope in Shek Pik in 1962. The carving is at 350 m (1,148 ft) above sea level.
The Lower Shek Pik Rock Carving, located about 300m from the coastline, was listed as a declared monument of Hong Kong
in 1979.
was located at Chung Hau. It was ruined as in 1979. A new temple was built in 1960 at Tai Long Wan.
are located at Chung Hau, Shek Pik: Sha Tsui Detention Centre and Shek Pik Prison. Sha Tsui Detention Centre is a minimum security institution for male young offenders. It was established in 1972. Shek Pik Prison is a maximum security institution, housing male adults serving medium to long-term sentences, including life imprisonment. It was established in 1984.
Shek Pik Camp, opened in 1968, is located at Tung Wan. The Shek Pik Tung Wan Beach (石壁東灣海灘) is located nearby. There is also a beach
at Tai Long Wan.
via by Tai O Road
and Keung Shan Road, and from Mui Wo
via South Lantau Road
.
Shek Pik is located at the end of Stage 8 and at the beginning of Stage 9 of the Lantau Trail
.
Lantau Island
Lantau Island , based on the old local name of Lantau Peak , is the largest island in Hong Kong, located at the mouth of the Pearl River. Administratively, most of Lantau Island is part of the Islands District of Hong Kong...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. When the Shek Pik Reservoir
Shek Pik Reservoir
Shek Pik Reservoir is a reservoir in Shek Pik on Lantau Island in Hong Kong. Built between 1957 and 1963, it has a storage capacity of 24 million cubic metres and is the third largest reservoir in Hong Kong after High Island Reservoir and Plover Cove Reservoir.-Location:Shek Pik Reservoir is...
was built, villages at Shek Pik were demolished and the villagers were relocated to other parts of Lantau Island and to Tsuen Wan
Tsuen Wan
Tsuen Wan is a bay in the Kowloon area of Hong Kong, opposite to Tsing Yi Island across Rambler Channel. The market town of Tsuen Wan emerged for the surrounding villages and fleets of fishing boats in the area. The town is around the present-day Tsuen Wan Station of the MTR...
. Below the dam of the reservoir is Shek Pik Prison.
Geography
Shek Pik was originally a north-south oriented valley, until all the upper part was filled by the water of the Shek Pik ReservoirShek Pik Reservoir
Shek Pik Reservoir is a reservoir in Shek Pik on Lantau Island in Hong Kong. Built between 1957 and 1963, it has a storage capacity of 24 million cubic metres and is the third largest reservoir in Hong Kong after High Island Reservoir and Plover Cove Reservoir.-Location:Shek Pik Reservoir is...
, which was completed in 1963. Before the construction of the reservoir, the valley was settled by several villages and most of the valley floor and the foothills were occupied by terraced paddy field
Paddy field
A paddy field is a flooded parcel of arable land used for growing rice and other semiaquatic crops. Paddy fields are a typical feature of rice farming in east, south and southeast Asia. Paddies can be built into steep hillsides as terraces and adjacent to depressed or steeply sloped features such...
s. The southern part of Shek Pik is facing the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
and features three small bays. From West to East: Tai Long Wan (大浪灣), Chung Hau (涌口) and Tung Wan (東灣; lit. "eastern bay").
Villages
A tradition mentions that a clanChinese clan
A Chinese clan is a patrilineal and patrilocal group of related Chinese people with a common surname sharing a common ancestor and, in many cases, an ancestral home.-Description:...
from Ma Tau Wai
Ma Tau Wai
Ma Tau Wai is an area in Kowloon City District, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It was originally a walled village between present-day Argyle Street and Prince Edward Road West, east of St Teresa's Hospital....
in Kowloon
Kowloon
Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...
accompanied the last two young emperors
Emperor Duanzong of Song
Emperor Duānzōng was the eighth and penultimate emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty of China who reigned from 1276 to 1278 and died at the early age of ten. He was also known as the "Nation Establishing Duke " ....
to Lautau Island and finally settled in Shek Pik to avoid the Mongol invasion at the end of Southern Song (1127–1279). Based on the review of historic documents, the existence of village settlements at Shek Pik can be traced back to the Ming Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
(1368–1644), although the area may have been settled earlier. The villages were largely self-sufficient farming and coastal fishing communities. The main village, Shek Pik Wai (石壁圍; lit. "the walled village
Walled villages of Hong Kong
Once common throughout China, walled villages can still be found in southern China and Hong Kong. Most of the walled villages in Hong Kong are located in the New Territories...
of Shek Pik), was located near the head of the main valley. A populous place in the mid-19th century, its population had declined to 363 inhabitants by the time of the 1911 Hong Kong Colony census, and numbered 202 in 1957. Fan Pui Village (墳背村) had 59 inhabitants at each count. The villages of Shek Pik Valley - Shek Pik, Fan Pui, Kong Pui (崗貝) and the hamlet of Hang Tsai (坑仔) - were demolished and cleared to allow construction of the Shek Pik Reservoir. A total of about 260 people were resettled as a consequence. Most of the villagers of Shek Pik Village moved into five-storey apartment blocks in the urban Shek Pik New Village (石碧新村) in Tsuen Wan
Tsuen Wan
Tsuen Wan is a bay in the Kowloon area of Hong Kong, opposite to Tsing Yi Island across Rambler Channel. The market town of Tsuen Wan emerged for the surrounding villages and fleets of fishing boats in the area. The town is around the present-day Tsuen Wan Station of the MTR...
. Most of the villagers of Fan Pui moved to a new village nearby, Tai Long Wan Tsuen (大浪灣村) at Tai Long Wan, Shek Pik. Some families from both villages moved to a row of houses near Mui Wo
Mui Wo
Mui Wo is a rural town on the eastern coast of Lantau Island in Hong Kong. The main beach in Mui Wo is known as Silver Mine Bay .-History:...
Ferry Pier.
The villagers of Fan Pui had chosen to move to the nearby new rural village of Tai Long Wan Tsuen in order to continue farming. Remodeling long abandoned fields allowed to provide them with about the same acreage of rice fields
Paddy field
A paddy field is a flooded parcel of arable land used for growing rice and other semiaquatic crops. Paddy fields are a typical feature of rice farming in east, south and southeast Asia. Paddies can be built into steep hillsides as terraces and adjacent to depressed or steeply sloped features such...
near the new village. Tai Long Wan had a population of about 120 people in 1970. By 1983, with the younger villagers moving to the city, the population had declined to 22 and most of the farming activity had ceased.
Rock carvings
Rock carvingsPrehistoric Hong Kong
Prehistoric Hong Kong is the period between the arrival of the first humans in the modern Hong Kong region and the start of recorded in Chinese history. The history of the region is...
from the neolithic age were found by Chen Kung-chiek in Shek Pik in 1939 when the local villagers told him there was an engraved carving on the upper part of the beach and to the west of Tung Wan. There was the second carving found on the opposite side of the valley. It has been split into two parts by lightning and the rock is now lying face down so the carving can not be seen.
According to the local villagers, there is the third carving further up the valley. This carving, (later called "the upper Shek Pik Rock Carving" to distinguish it from the one found on the Shek Pik Beach) was found on a steep slope in Shek Pik in 1962. The carving is at 350 m (1,148 ft) above sea level.
The Lower Shek Pik Rock Carving, located about 300m from the coastline, was listed as a declared monument of Hong Kong
Declared monuments of Hong Kong
Declared monuments of Hong Kong are places, structures or buildings legally declared to be "protected". In Hong Kong, declaring a monument requires consulting the Antiquities Advisory Board, the approval of the Chief Executive as well as the publication of the notice in government gazette.As of 12...
in 1979.
Temples
A Hau Wong Temple used to be the focal point of the village life at Shek Pik. It was inundated by the Shek Pik Reservoir in 1960. A Hung Shing TempleHung Shing Temple
Hung Shing Temples or Tai Wong Temples are temples dedicated to Hung Shing. Hung Shing temples have been widely built in southern China, especially Guangdong province and in Hong Kong.-Existing temples:...
was located at Chung Hau. It was ruined as in 1979. A new temple was built in 1960 at Tai Long Wan.
Prison and detention centre
Two institutions operated by the Correctional Services DepartmentHong Kong Correctional Services
Hong Kong Correctional Services is responsible for prisoners and prisons in Hong Kong. The Commissioner of Correctional Services reports to the Secretary for Security....
are located at Chung Hau, Shek Pik: Sha Tsui Detention Centre and Shek Pik Prison. Sha Tsui Detention Centre is a minimum security institution for male young offenders. It was established in 1972. Shek Pik Prison is a maximum security institution, housing male adults serving medium to long-term sentences, including life imprisonment. It was established in 1984.
Others
The Hong Kong Red CrossHong Kong Red Cross
The Hong Kong Red Cross is the national Red Cross society of Hong Kong as part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. It was established officially on 12 July 1950 as a branch of the British Red Cross Society in Hong Kong...
Shek Pik Camp, opened in 1968, is located at Tung Wan. The Shek Pik Tung Wan Beach (石壁東灣海灘) is located nearby. There is also a beach
Beaches of Hong Kong
Hong Kong has a long coastline that is full of twists and turns with many bays and beaches. Many of them are well sheltered by mountains nearby, as Hong Kong is a mountainous place...
at Tai Long Wan.
Access
The area can be reached from Tai OTai O
Tai O is a fishing town, partly located on an island of the same name, on the western side of Lantau Island in Hong Kong.-Geography:On the main part of Lantau Island, a river splits to the north and west and at this fork lies the island referred to as Tai O. Two pedestrian bridges cross the river...
via by Tai O Road
Tai O Road
Tai O Road is a main road in southwest Lantau Island in Hong Kong. It is the west-most part of the main roads in south Lantau Island. It starts halfway down the side of Keung Shan, near Kwun Yam Monastery, and runs downhill to the fishing town of Tai O....
and Keung Shan Road, and from Mui Wo
Mui Wo
Mui Wo is a rural town on the eastern coast of Lantau Island in Hong Kong. The main beach in Mui Wo is known as Silver Mine Bay .-History:...
via South Lantau Road
South Lantau Road
South Lantau Road is a road on the southern side of Lantau Island in Hong Kong. Being the major road on the island, the road connects Mui Wo in the east to Shek Pik in the west. Majority portion of the road is along the southern shore of the island...
.
Shek Pik is located at the end of Stage 8 and at the beginning of Stage 9 of the Lantau Trail
Lantau Trail
The Lantau Trail , opened on 4 December, 1984, is a long-distance footpath on Lantau Island in the New Territories of Hong Kong. The 70 km trail is circular, starting and finishing in Mui Wo. The Lantau Trail has good visitor facilities along the way, and the route is well marked. There are...
.
External links
- Details about the Shek Pik Tung Wan Archaeological Site
- Hayes, J., "A Glimpse of the Land Settlement at Shek Pik Village, Lantau Island, Hong Kong", Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. 28, 1988, pp. 228-233.