In the late Qing dynasty (19th century), the house was built by Deng Xiaoping's great-grandfather Deng Xinzao (邓心早) and grandfather Deng Keda (邓克达). Deng Xiaoping was born here on 22 August 1904, in the 37th year of the Guangxu reign. He lived here for about 15 years.[4]
The Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) approved the construction of "Deng Xiaoping's Residence Exhibition Hall" to commemorate the centenary of Deng Xiaoping's birth. The museum covers an area of 10 acres with a building area of 3,800 square meters. The architectural elements of the museum are a combination of eastern Sichuan folk style and modern architectural style. The exterior of the museum is simple, reflecting Deng Xiaoping's unassuming character. On the right side, there are three sloping roofs in a staggered pattern, symbolizing Deng Xiaoping's revolutionary journey of "three falls and three rises".[5] In the middle, a high wall towers up to the sky, implying that Deng Xiaoping's great achievements have set up an immortal monument in the history of mankind, and also indicating that the Chinese people will carry out the cause of socialist modernization with Chinese characteristics to the end with a clear banner.[6][7]
The whole architectural design from the slope to the monument, and from the monument to the slope, implying that Deng Xiaoping from ordinary to great, and from greatness back to ordinary meaning. In terms of building materials, granite and teak were used to symbolize Deng Xiaoping's strong and flexible character. On August 13, 2004, the museum was officially inaugurated, and Hu Jintao, the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and the President of the People's Republic of China, visited the museum and delivered a speech.[8]
The exhibition hall of Deng Xiaoping's former residence consists of a prelude hall, three display halls, a collection hall, a movie screening hall and related ancillary facilities. The exhibition introduces the advanced display concept of international museums, with the theme of "I am a son of the Chinese people", displaying 170 precious relics, 408 pictures, more than 200 documents, 4 replica scenes, and 6.2 million words of multimedia, combining the high-tech means of sound, light, and electricity, to reproduce Deng Xiaoping's life. The exhibition won the special award of the Sixth National Museum System Top Ten Fine Display Exhibitions on May 17, 2005, and was awarded the "Special Prize" of the Sixth National Museum System Top Ten Fine Display Exhibitions.[9]
