LOCATED halfway up a mountain in Dapeng New Area, an ancient village with at least 300 years of history is going to be relocated soon as dozens of villagers signed an agreement to move the village May 20, the Daily Sunshine reported.

The time-honored village is known as Bantianyun Village. According to the historical record, the place was first mentioned in a book published in 1688 and then on a map dated to 1819.

A government document released in August 2015 specifies that the village belongs to a first-class protection area of water resources and the village needs to be relocated to preserve the sources of potable water.

However, although the village will be relocated, some valuable heritage buildings and residences will be preserved, according to the document.

The village is not well-known to the public as the location is halfway up a mountain known as Paogouling and transportation there is not convenient.

Although the place has beautiful scenery and is close to nature, most of the villagers have left their ancestral houses and moved down the mountain to live in the city or Hong Kong, while some have even emigrated abroad.

Currently, there is only one household still living in the village. “This is the place where I was born and grew up, so I have a strong emotional attachment to this village,” said Kuang Huiliang. He and his family spend every weekend in the village, but live in a house down the mountain because Kuang’s son attends a school in the town center.

On May 20, dozens of the original villagers came back from different cities, and even other countries, to sign their names on the relocation agreement at Nan’ao Subdistrict Office. It was agreed that approximately 75 percent of the buildings would be dismantled.

The village relocation project is the subdistrict office’s major task for this year under the authority’s promise to preserve the residences. (Zhang Qian)