Abstract

Taking the Ye Family Manor in Dengcheng, a Qing-dynasty merchant residence in eastern Henan, as a case study, this paper applies pattern-language theory to architectural ornamentation. Field survey and documentary evidence are used to organize the decorative system into three levels—characters (unit patterns), words (combined patterns), and phrases (complex patterns)—and a motif–component frequency matrix is used to examine its architectural distribution. The results show that semantic range, structural nesting, and visual information density increase as patterns develop from isolated motifs into thematic compositions. Motif categories also exhibit differentiated distributions: animal and plant motifs occur primarily on visually prominent elements such as doors, windows, beams, and brackets; textual motifs concentrate on column bases and beams; and geometric motifs occur most frequently on column bases and floors. These correspondences between motif type and component attributes reveal how the Ye family embedded auspicious aspirations, moral instruction, and social identity in architectural details. The study provides an analytical basis for the documentation, interpretation, and conservation of ornamental heritage in traditional merchant residences of the Central Plains.

Keywords

pattern language, Ye Family Manor, architectural ornamentation, component distribution, cultural context