The Humble Administrators Garden
The Humble Administrators Garden in Suzhou, China
The Humble Administrators Garden Slideshow
The Humble Administrators Garden Photo Gallery (Downloadable Pictures)
The beautiful waterside City of Suzhou in Jiangsu
Province in South China is most famous for its elegant
classical gardens. Among these, the Humble Administrator's
Garden, covering about 52,000 sq. meters (12.85 acres), is
the largest and most renowned. Due to its unique designs and
ethereal beauty, the garden has garnered many special
honors. It is listed as a World Cultural Heritage site and
has also been designated as one of the Cultural Relics of
National Importance under the Protection of the State as
well as a Special Tourist Attraction of China. Along with
the Summer Palace in Beijing, the Mountain Resort of Chengde
in Hebei Province and the Lingering Garden in Suzhou, it is
considered as one of China's four most famous gardens. No
other classic garden in the country has been honored more
than this one.
The Humble Administrator's Garden was originally built in
1509 during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It was initially a
private garden of a former government servant named Wang
Xianchen. It was said he intended to build a garden after
retired and just do some gardening work like planting trees
and vegetables there, which was said to be the life of a
humble man by him. Hence is the name of the garden. The
garden was created upon the old relics of a resident and a
temple. Water feature is the main background and its natural
landscape includes small forests, hills and rock formations.
It also has man-made pavilions, halls and parlors. Unlike
the Grand View Garden and other famous gardens in Beijing,
it is representative of the Ming Dynasty building style.
The garden consists of Eastern, Central and Western sections
as well as some residences of the former owners. The
resident houses are typical of the style of Suzhou Local
Residences, whose feature can be seen in the famous water
township Zhouzhuang not far from Suzhou City. The site of
the residences has been rebuilt as the Garden Museum now.
The Eastern Section is dotted with sheer hills, green
grasses, dense bamboo and pine forests and winding streams.
The main building is the Cymbidium Goeingii Hall (Lanxiang
Tang). Its south wall has a panoramic map of the entire
garden. Another impressive structure is the Celestial Spring
Pavilion (Tianquan Ting), which gets its name from an
ancient well inside whose water tastes very sweet.
The Central Section is the truly elite part of the garden,
with one-third of its area covered by water. It is lined
with exuberant trees and elegant parlors. Pavilions and
courtyards are clustered throughout. The Hall of Distant
Fragrance (Yuanxiang Tang) is the main building that is
named after a lotus pool nearby. When the summer comes the
pool is filled with lotuses and the heady fragrance wafts
into the building. The hall is designed with oversized glass
windows on all sides for easy viewing. Nearby is the Small
Flying Rainbow Bridge (Xiaofeihong), a rare type of bridge
and the only one in the garden you can walk across.
The main building in the Western Section is a stately and
ornate hall which is divided into two by a massive screen.
The south part is 18 Camellias Hall (Shiba Mantuoluohua
Guan) and the north part is the 36 Pairs of Mandarin Duck's
Hall (Saliu Yuanyang Guan). In a nearby pool where the ducks
were fed, stands an octagonal Pagoda Reflection Pavilion
(Taying Ting); there is an optical illusion here - it
appears as if a pagoda was lifting when all we actually see
is the reflection of the pavilion.
In recent years, the Humble Administrator's Garden has been
the site of many floral exhibitions. Every spring and
summer, the garden hosts the Azalea Festival and the Lotus
Festival. There are bonsai shows in the aptly named Bonsai
Garden (Penjing Yuan) in the Western Section while precious
Chinese stones are shown in the Elegant Stone House (Yashi
Zhai) in the Central Section.
(ChinaTravelGuide.com)
