狮子林 - The Lion Forest Garden

Situated in the northeastern corner of Suzhou, next to the the Humble Administrator's Garden (拙政园), the Lion Forest Garden (狮子林), is known for its expansive labyrinth of limestone rock formations said to resemble lions. Covering 1.1 hectares (or just under 2 4/5 acres), the current garden was constructed during the Yuan Dynasty during the reign of Emperor Zhizheng (至正) in A.D. 1342 by the disciples of the highly respected Zen Buddhist Abbot Weize. In addition to the rock formations themselves, the garden’s name is derived from the story of Abbot Weize’s teacher, Zhong Feng, who reportedly received enlightenment on the Lion Rock at Mt. Tianmu.

One of the many beautiful moon gates

Several Qing emperors frequented this garden in particular and created gardens inspired by it at several royal properties, including the Imperial Mountain Resort of Chengde (避暑山庄). Though the abstract images of the lions may not be obvious to all visitors, one cannot walk away from the garden without an intense wonder for the incredible maze of pathways meandering their way through the man-made mountains. Moreover, I was amazed at the incredible handiwork and beautiful design elements throughout the garden, including intricate mosaic walkways – created from smooth river stones, but the skill with which they were set, created an amazingly flat surface. In addition, the incredible sculptures and artistic elements on the roof ridgelines and pediments inspire thoughts of fantasy and whimsy – yet it was interesting to note that only a few visitors took the fortunate time to look up and chance a glance at them. Other details to awe visitors included ornate windows – each incredibly detailed and no two alike – not to mention the treasure trove of fanciful doorways and moon gates. I could go on forever, but as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words . . . so with that said, please enjoy “reading” the slideshow below.

**Some information from The Classical Gardens of Suzhou by Xu Wentao, trans. by Dong Xiaomin

苏州市园林和绿化管理局 - Suzhou Gardens and Landscaping Administration Bureau

Public horticulture is a term that is often hard to define - it often varies depending on who you ask. However, in the U.S. and many other countries more and more types of horticulture are being recognized as part of the public horticulture profession. For example, in addition to the traditional institutions such as botanical gardens and parks, places such as cemeteries, zoos, golf courses, hotels, and even amusement parks are increasingly considered to be important sites of public horticulture, due to their quality of display, seasonal changes, and visitation resulting from their horticultural efforts. Therefore, in addition to the many botanical gardens I visited in China, I wanted to be sure to meet with those responsible for the preservation and care of the beautiful and highly visited gardens in Suzhou.


My contacts in Shanghai graciously helped to arrange a meeting for me at the Suzhou Gardens and Landscaping Administration Bureau. I had the opportunity to meet with the Deputy Director, Mr. YANG Hui, and several members of his staff regarding the exchange program I am proposing. I was also able to learn more about the incredible work the bureau does in preserving not merely the physical spaces of the gardens, but specifically in preserving the intended aesthetic of the gardens. Mr. Yang believed that the type of exchange program I am proposing would prove beneficial to his staff and had several important suggestions regarding its structure. He explained that they already have received individuals from abroad to study at the gardens under his jurisdiction and those experiences could definitely yield additional insights regarding this matter.



As you can see from the slide show above, the headquarters for the bureau was quite beautiful on its own right.

网师园 - The Master-of-Nets Garden

Nestled into the southeastern corner of Suzhou, the Master-of-Nets Garden (网师园) is quite small compared to the other classical gardens at only 0.6 Hectares (or 1 1/2 acres). A garden known as the Fisherman's Retreat was originally built on the property in 1140 A.D. during the Southern Song Dynasty. The current garden was constructed over 200 years ago during the Qing Dynasty by a retired government official who borrowed the fisherman theme from the earlier garden and named the new creation the Master-of-Nets Garden.



Though quite small, the Master-of-Nets Garden is known for its mastery of design principles such as depth, scale and relative dimension, and "borrowed scenery." The last concept is when a smaller space is made to feel larger by "borrowing" the view sheds (trees, mountains, architectural features, etc.) of neighboring properties in order to deceive the mind into believing the property continues into the borrowed spaces. This concept exists today as a testament to the foresight and planning of the Suzhou officials, since the planners early-on banned the construction of new, modern buildings in the old city areas. Thus, a new portion of the city outside the traditional city wall has been developed with modern skyscrapers and office buildings, while the traditional view sheds in the old city have remained intact and uncompromised. Compare this with the views of Liang's Garden in Foshan in which modern highrises can be seen eclipsing the traditional views of the historic garden.

留园 - The Lingering Garden

The Lingering Garden (留园), encompassing 2.3 hectares (or a little less than 6 acres) is my favorite garden in Suzhou. I had the opportunity to first visit this garden 2 1/2 years ago during a winter session study abroad trip, but was delighted to have the occasion during the growing season to return to this wonderful garden.



The Lingering Garden, or Liu Yuan, is considered to be the finest example of a traditional scholar's garden in Suzhou and is one of the four most famous gardens in all of China. Originally built in 1593 A.D. by a Ming official named Xu Taishi (徐泰时), it was then called the East Garden (东园). Later falling into disrepair, during the Qing Dynasty the garden was rebuilt by the Liu (刘) family and was commonly known as Liu Yuan, referencing the surname of the family. During the 19th century, when the garden was restored, its name was changed to Liu Yuan (留园) - meaning "The Lingering Garden" which is homophonous to its earlier name. The garden today is famous for its use and successful exploitation of space - garden rooms, flowing transitions between inside and outside, and contrasting scale make the garden feel much larger than it is in reality. I think that the accompanying photographs will convey to you the timeless quality of these concepts as fittingly exhibited at the Lingering Garden.

虎丘 - Tiger Hill

A popular scenic spot in Suzhou, Tiger Hill (虎丘) is also a remarkable destination to discover some of the vast history and architectural diversity of the city. There are several suppositions as to the origin of this hillock's name. The first is that the hill resembles a crouching tiger, though this attribute is much less evident when compared to the nearby Lion Hill in Suzhou, which more clearly resembles a crouching lion. However, the more fanciful legend states that the spot was so named following the death and burial of King Helu (阖闾) on the mount . . . at that time a white tiger purportedly appeared to guard the tomb. I am a fan of this story myself - how about all of you?

The above slide show shows a bit of the architectural diversity evident on the hill - collected over a long history indeed!

Regarding King Helu . . . His tomb reportedly does reside somewhere within the imposing mound. However, over the years, the size of the hill expanded as more tombs were added, and at the pinnacle of this peak there now exists a large seven-story pagoda, known as Yunyansi Pagoda (云岩寺塔). It was built approximately 1,100 years ago in the later part of the Five Dynasties Period. The foundation of the tower was built partially on the hill's rock and partially on the landfill covering over the monarchical tombs. As a result of the different densities of the substrate, over the years and as the fill compressed, the pagoda began tilting towards the backfill. This has caused many to dub the pagoda China's Leaning Tower - though it predates Pisa's famous landmark by about 200 years!

This picture is not crooked - the tower is!

Interestingly, the government recently had to suspend an archaeological dig into one of the tombs for fear of further destabilizing the foundation of the tower. Yet to the disappointment of many, they were within several yards of a chamber believed to hold a legendary stash of ornate swords - of priceless value. Perhaps one day the swords will be able to be unearthed without compromising the structure of the tower . . . At least the legend lives on for the time being.

拙政园 - The Humble Administrator's Garden

Located in northeastern Suzhou, the Humble Administrator's Garden (拙政园) covers 5.2 hectares (approximately 13 acres) and is considered one of the four finest gardens in all of Suzhou. In 1997, it was listed on the World Heritage List by UNESCO.

Bearing witness to the fame of the garden, there were quite a few people visiting it the same day as I - but I think the garden's beauty still shines through . . .

This garden was created in the year 1509 A.D. on the grounds of an earlier Tang Dynasty garden by Wang Xianchen (王献臣), a powerful official in the Ming Imperial Court, when he withdrew from government service. He took inspiration for his garden from an essay entitled "Staying at Home Idle" by the Jin writer Pan Yue. This essay concerned the humble luxury of cultivating one's vegetable garden, hence the derivation of the name (from The Classical Gardens of Suzhou by Xu Wentao, trans. by Dong Xiaoming). However, the beautiful garden is not merely a relic of the past for the garden regularly hosts several flower festivals including the spring Rhododendron Show and summer Lotus (Nelumbo) Festival.

苏州市 - The City of Suzhou

Following my time in Nanjing, my next stop was the beautiful city of Suzhou (苏州). Strategically located in the southern part of Jiangsu Province (江苏省) in the Yangtze River Delta region, Suzhou has long been the center of China's silk industry. However, Suzhou's most wide acclaim draws forth from its fabled natural beauty, incredible landscaped spaces, and mild climate, which have all long positioned Suzhou as the subject for artists and poets alike.

Suzhou has many canals coursing their way throughout the city.

Suzhou, originally known as Helu (阖闾), was founded approximately 2,500 years ago, during the Spring and Autumn period as the capital of the State of Wu (吴国). Just as Hubei Province comprises much of the territory of the ancient State of Chu (discussed earlier at Wuhan), Jiangsu Province comprises a large portion of the former State of Wu. As a result, the people of Shanghai, Suzhou, and surrounding areas speak a dialect of Chinese known as Wuhua (吴话). Wuhua, however, is mutually unintelligible with other dialects of Chinese, so local residents are also required to learn Mandarin Chinese as well (which is the language of business and governance throughout China). The form of Wuhua in Shanghai, commonly referred to as Shanghainese, is the most widely spoken form of Wuhua, but I was told on several occasions (in and outside of Suzhou) that the form spoken in Suzhou (known as Suzhouhua, 苏州话) is considered to be the most beautiful of all Chinese dialects due to its softness and accent (similar in the U.S. to the romanticized perception of the American Southern accents - think Gone with the Wind, etc.).

One of the plethora of bridges in Suzhou traversing the network of canals and natural water bodies - each conveying a unique charm

Suzhou has many traditional scholars gardens created over several dynasties which cause the city to be a major draw for tourists, both domestic and foreign. These gardens are incredible examples of traditional Chinese landscape design undergirded by philosophy. I had the great opportunity to visit quite a few of these gardens during my time in Suzhou - as you will see from the next series of posts. As you compare these gardens to Liang's Garden in Foshan (post from July 23rd), notice the aesthetic differences between the two styles.