The so-called “Erotic Romance of West Quarry” actually referred to the sex industry in Hong Kong’s early development up to the ban on prostitution in the mid-1930s. Among all the red-light districts at that time, Shek Tong Tsui in the west of Hong Kong Island was the most popular, hence the phrase “Tong Sai Fung Yuet” - Erotic Romance of West Quarry.
Hong Kong was a commercial port populated by a mix of Chinese and foreigners in its early development. At the time, people who came and earned a living here were mostly young men, be it Chinese or people from other countries. As such, the ratio between females and males was severely imbalanced. Prostitution was then a natural phenomenon. Moreover, during this transitional period from an old era into a new one, the newly rich Chinese merchants upheld the tradition of the erotic life-style of the Chinese society. They viewed patronizing prostitutes as a normal way of life. Not only were these flings refinements in life which were decent enough to be mentioned in the public, they were actually widely circulated as romantic tales of talented young men and beauties. The foreigners’ community in turn introduced a mix of East and West elements into the existing erotic culture. The British Hong Kong colonial government enforced control on the sex industry by rendering it a legal activity. This led the Hong Kong erotic industry and its derivative industries to boom as the most flourishing, refined and meticulous model in the South of China at the time.
