WANDER SHANGHAI

Ground floor, Building 3, 178 South Wulumuqi Road

Cao Ying’s Study

草婴书房

Memorial study within a historic residence

Cao Ying never lived in this building. Opened in 2019, the study is a memorial created with his family, using possessions and books to present his working life.

Explore the historical timeline
Interior memorial display of Cao Ying’s Study in the 2019 report; not a room he formerly occupied.

Capture date unstated; published 2019-03-28

Interior memorial display of Cao Ying’s Study in the 2019 report; not a room he formerly occupied.

The Paper field report: Xia Yan and Cao Ying · Publishing institution; photographer not separately credited · Image source · Original source declares no open licence

At a glance

Built
Original building date unknown; study opened 2019
Architect
Not established by the sources
Architecture
Memorial study within a historic residence
Original use
Garden residence
Present use
Memorial to translator Cao Ying
Address
Ground floor, Building 3, 178 South Wulumuqi RoadSouth Wulumuqi Road

Architecture and use: sources[1] [2] [3]

The beginning

Why was it built here?

Cao Ying never lived in this building. Opened in 2019, the study is a memorial created with his family, using possessions and books to present his working life.[1] [2] [3]

Cao Ying translated Russian literature, systematically completing Tolstoy’s fiction between 1978 and 1998. The desk, tools and worn Russian books present cultural exchange as sustained daily work.[1] [2] [3]

Look up, then look closer

Details worth a closer look

Massing and façade

The display occupies the ground floor of a yellow house, combining a reconstructed study with newly organized galleries. Exhibition design, the host building and Cao Ying’s possessions have different dates.[1] [2] [3]

Space and details

Shelves, sofa and photographs preserve the scale of a study, while glazing connects gallery and lawn. The photograph shows a memorial display, not evidence of the building’s 1930s interior.[1] [2] [3]

One building, changing roles

Read the building through time

Captions distinguish photographic dates from publication dates; periods without reliable images are covered in the text.

  1. 1978–1998

    Cao Ying translates Tolstoy’s fiction

    This period describes the translator’s career, not the age of the host building.[1] [2] [3]

  2. 2018

    Memorial preparation and site repair

    The ground floor of Building 3 was prepared as a memorial study.[1] [2] [3]

  3. 2019

    Study opens to visitors

    Family possessions recreate a working setting; Cao Ying never lived here.[1] [2] [3]

Today and visiting

Discover the building from the street

Memorial to translator Cao Ying[1] [2] [3]

Address
Ground floor, Building 3, 178 South Wulumuqi Road
Visiting
Observe from public pavements; entry follows posted opening and booking rules. Respect residential, office and worship uses. A guide marker is not permission to enter.
Find the address on a map ↗

Sources checked: 2026-10-26 · Observe from public pavements; entry follows posted opening and booking rules. Respect residential, office and worship uses. A guide marker is not permission to enter.

Shanghai and the world

Read history across the neighbourhood

Neighbouring apartments, houses and public spaces have different construction and use histories. Addresses, photograph directions and records together reveal how the neighbourhood developed.[1] [2] [3]

Garden House at 64 South Wulumuqi RoadXia Yan’s Former Residence

Text and image sources

This account is based on the sources below. Unverified details are identified as such. Where photographs are included, sources and licences are listed beneath each image.

  1. The Paper field report: Xia Yan and Cao Ying ↗

    Compiled from the listed evidence. Publication, capture and construction dates are distinguished.

  2. Xinhua: opening of two cultural spaces ↗

    Compiled from the listed evidence. Publication, capture and construction dates are distinguished.

  3. Shangguan: 66 Wutong Courtyard ↗

    Compiled from the listed evidence. Publication, capture and construction dates are distinguished.

  4. The Paper field report: Xia Yan and Cao Ying ↗

    Original source declares no open licence

Image handling and dating

Images come from the archives or image source pages listed beneath each photograph. We resize and compress them to WebP, preserving their original proportions without colourisation or added detail. Grain, blur and scanning marks in historical photographs are retained.

Original framing is retained, with WebP conversion and previews only. Article dates do not replace unknown capture dates; drawings and photographs are identified separately.