China | Pingyao

In banking’s shadow

A former financial hub now begs for the patronage of tourists

The town Mao forgot

ITALIAN cities such as Florence and Venice have long made a mint from the architectural wonders built when they were financial centres. China has been slower to capitalise on the physical remains of past commercial glory in Pingyao, an urban backwater in inland Shanxi province, which was China’s banking hub in the 19th century. Today tourists flock to the walled city, with its unusually well-preserved houses built between the 17th and 19th centuries. But restoring its former wealth remains elusive.

This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “In banking’s shadow”

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