An eye-catching government building with a large dome in Fuyang, Anhui province, resembles the US Capitol in Washington.

But it's a smaller building in the city, one that mimics the White House, that has been recently drawing attention online lately, both for its appearance and its presumably luxurious furnishings.

The smaller building bears a striking resemblance to the official residence of presidents of the United States. But this one is not for government use. It serves as a public toilet at a local liquor manufacturing company.

The toilet, designed with a dome - the real White House doesn't have one - by a local company, belongs to Anhui Golden Seed Winery Co, a publicly traded liquor manufacturer. Completed in 2012 after months of construction at a cost of 900,000 yuan ($144,090), the toilet covers 418 square meters.

"We originally had a toilet built about 1994. But it failed to meet the daily needs of our increasing workforce and visiting customers," an executive, surnamed Zhang, said on Thursday. The factory employs about 4,000 staff and received about 100,000 visiting customers in 2013, Zhang said.

"We wanted to make the building a little special in appearance, but more important, we emphasize its function as a toilet, so the interior decoration is not so luxurious as some people imagine."

Golden Seed Winery is a liquor brand in China that is popular with the working class and in rural areas.

zhulixin@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 05/16/2014 page4)