The history of Hong Kong’s bamboo scaffolding

Bamboo has always been a much-utilised material in China, and its flexible strength and fast-growing properties have long been admired going back thousands of years to ancient China. The earliest record of bamboo being used for buildings dates back to around the Sui and Tang dynasties when it was used to construct stilt houses in rainy climates. Perhaps most famously, bamboo scaffolding was ubiquitous enough to be drawn into Zhang Zeduan’s famous art piece Along the River During the Qingming Festival, which dates back to the Song dynasty.

Looking into Chinese folklore, it is believed that the legendary sage Yao Chao-shi is credited with the creation of bamboo scaffolding. During a time of great chaos in primordial China, he supposedly taught people to build nest-like structures that could protect them from roaming wild beasts, which eventually evolved into bamboo structures. As Yao’s birthday in the lunar calendar is the 19th day of the first month, this is when some scaffold workers are known to pay respects to the deity.

Bamboo has always been integral to our construction landscape because of characteristics that make it perfectly suited for use in our dense city. Firstly, bamboo grows fast, and is affordable, reusable, and sustainable. It can be cut and assembled on-site without large crews of workers, and can be easily transported. It can also be adapted for use, whether mounting an air conditioning unit or building a skyscraper, and can easily fit into smaller spaces.

With a skilled team of scaffolders, bamboo is simply more time- and cost-effective. Several of the most iconic buildings in Hong Kong’s skyline, including Norman Foster’s HSBC headquarters – once the most expensive building of its time – have all utilised bamboo scaffolding while being built.

Bamboo does grow in Hong Kong – there are bamboo forests near Tai Po, Yuen Long, Tsuen Wan, Sha Tin, and Tai Mo Shan – but not fast enough to keep up with the industry demand. So most of the bamboo used in Hong Kong comes from Guangdong and Guangxi, imported via Macau.

Two types of bamboo are most commonly used in our scaffoldings: the Kao Jue pole bamboo and Mao Jue hair bamboo. The latter is thicker and stronger, and mostly used as load-bearing supports, while the former is used for horizontal support and platforms. 

The plant is cut into pieces approximately seven metres long, and dried for at least three months. They can be stored while exposed to the elements, and can typically be used about three times before the poles start to warp and become too weak.

The most common type of bamboo scaffolding around town is double-layered scaffolds extending past the building into at least the middle of the path. Usually set up for construction work or major renovations, these structures are reinforced with steel brackets and covered by a protective layer of flame-retardant material to prevent falling objects from crashing onto our busy streets. It’s not rare for pedestrians to walk underneath bamboo scaffoldings while on Hong Kong’s streets, with workers yelling overhead and the occasional fiery sparks from welding work flying down.

There are also the truss-out bamboo scaffoldings, seen randomly jutting out from the sides of buildings. These small exterior platforms are used for minor repairs or installations of drainage pipes, air conditioning units, concrete, and more. Even though neon signs are a dying art in Hong Kong these days, there are still plenty of large-scale signboards hanging over our streets, and sometimes these are caged by bamboo scaffolding, with workers casually dangling around the thin lengths of wood. These look precarious, but are supported by steel wiring or hanging posts attached to the buildings that the signboards belong to.

One of the most important parts of erecting bamboo scaffolding is tying the poles together, a task so vital that apprentices and younger workers are not allowed to attempt a knot for years. In the past, workers would use narrow strips of bamboo as ties, soaked in water to make them more pliable, but since the 70s and 80s, these have been replaced with plastic. Today’s bamboo structures are held together by zip tie-like plastic lashings, and no small amount of skill.

As with any craft that’s been practised for some time, there are traditions, rituals, and superstitions associated with bamboo scaffolding. For example, it is an unwritten rule that the workers who set up the scaffold need to be the ones to take it down – and this is always done from the top down, and from the outside in. It’s also not uncommon for scaffolders to conduct a blessing ceremony for good fortune before starting a new build.

Scaffoldings used for construction are one thing, but Hong Kong’s bamboo theatres are another beast altogether. Constructed very similarly to scaffolds, bamboo theatres are an ancient Chinese art, beginning as early as the Han dynasty when street entertainers would perform in bamboo pavilions. Records of matshed structures – temporary builds of bamboo and leaves – also go back to the Song dynasty. By the Qing dynasty, they were popularised by travelling regional operas and had spread around China, with the first record of bamboo theatres in Hong Kong in the late 19th century.

While not used in modern-day China, the tradition of bamboo theatres lives on in Hong Kong. During the Hungry Ghost Festival, the birthday of deities, and other festivities, bamboo structures are set up across our territories to stage performances of Chinese opera. Depending on the celebration, these shows would be for thanksgiving to deities or entertainment for dearly departed souls.

Since they’re custom-built and made to be dismantled, bamboo theatres can flexibly fit into any neighbourhood, accommodating anywhere from hundreds within a smaller community or crowds in the thousands. Head to Victoria Park, the Soho area, Tsing Yi, Peng Chau, Sai Kung, Po Toi, and more to find Hong Kong’s bamboo theatres. These often seem to spring up overnight, with vibrant colours, flashy signage, lights, and more.

Whether it’s bamboo scaffolding or bamboo theatre, look out for these uniquely Hong Kong structures next time you’re out!