Eitou Hot Spring Museum Tatami Lobby 2015

The Beitou Hot Spring Museum () is a museum about hot spring in

Beitou Park The Beitou Park () is a park in Beitou District, Taipei, Taiwan. History The park was created in 1913, making it the third oldest park in Taipei and the first hot spring park on the island. It was constructed to welcome the visit of Prince Hiro ...

Beitou District Beitou District is the northernmost of the twelve districts of Taipei City, Taiwan. The historical spelling of the district is Peitou. The name originates from the Ketagalan word ''Kipatauw'', meaning witch. Beitou is the most mountainous an ...

, Taipei, Taiwan.

History

The construction of the building started in 1911 and completed in 1913 during the Japanese rule of Taiwan. It was initially built as Hokutō Public Bathhouse, the largest bathhouse in East Asia at that time. After the handover of Taiwan from Japan to the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

in 1945, the facility underwent several transformations, from police station, Kuomintang headquarter, to a reception house for local county administration called the Zhongshan House. However, the building was eventually closed and abandoned due to the corrosion caused by the hot springs and lack of proper maintenance. The building was declared a class 3 historical site by the Ministry of the Interior in February 1995. In March 1998, an overall makeover was initiated and completed with the official opening on 31 October 1998 as Beitou Hot Spring Museum.

Architecture

The museum is a

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...

-style building which was built with red bricks and wooden weatherboards.

Exhibitions

The museum is divided into two stories. The first floor houses the public bath which is no longer in use along with the introduction of hot springs history, hot spring facilities, appliances used in hot springs, Beitou stones, and the bathing space. The second floor houses six different exhibition areas, including Beitou history, a lookout balcony, Taiwanese Hollywood, exhibition area B, a multimedia room, and a tatami floor recreational area.

Access

The museum is accessible within walking distance east from

Xinbeitou Station The Taipei Metro Xinbeitou station (formerly transliterated as Hsin Peitou Station from 1997 until 2003) is the terminal station on the Xinbeitou branch line located in Beitou District, Taipei, Taiwan. The location of the station used to be the ...

of the Taipei Metro.

References

External links