Harvest Moons and Historic Houses: Reflections on the Mid-Autumn Festival
A festival of light and reunion
The Mid-Autumn Festival, one of the most cherished celebrations in Asia, falls this year on 6th October. Families gather to admire the full moon, light lanterns and share mooncakes. At its heart, the festival symbolises reunion, gratitude and hope.
During my years in Hong Kong, I saw the festival come alive in a way that still stays with me. Streets and parks glowed with lanterns, children proudly carried them in parades and my colleagues spoke excitedly about reuniting with parents and extended families. That sense of joy and togetherness is the soul of Mid-Autumn.
Legends and stories
The festival is steeped in myth. One of the best-loved legends tells of Hou Yi, who saved the earth by shooting down nine scorching suns. His wife Chang’e later drank an elixir of immortality and ascended to the moon, where she became the Moon Goddess. To this day, families tell her story while gazing at the full moon, a reminder of sacrifice, continuity and the power of story to bind generations.
Lanterns, mooncakes and Hong Kong traditions
Hong Kong is famous for its lantern carnivals, where parks fill with glowing displays, music and dragon dances. The lanterns represent light and guidance, while the act of gathering outdoors under the harvest moon represents unity.
No festival is complete without mooncakes - round pastries filled with lotus seed paste or red bean, often with salted egg yolk at the centre to symbolise the full moon. In recent years, Hong Kong has added playful twists, from custard mooncakes to ice-cream varieties. These traditions mix past and present in ways that make the festival feel both timeless and fresh.
Parallels with historic estates
At The Estate Experience Consultancy, I see deep resonance between Mid-Autumn traditions and our work with historic houses. Both are about heritage as lived experience. Like lanterns lighting the night, estates can serve as beacons for their communities. Like mooncakes shared among families, they are symbols of unity, drawing people together through events, storytelling and continuity.
Heritage endures not by standing still, but by being lived, celebrated and shared - much like the Mid-Autumn Festival itself.
As the harvest moon rises, may we be reminded of the light, connection and continuity that both this festival and our estates bring into our lives.