| Legole.Com Discover china. Explore the beauty and wonder of the land, people, and culture of China. |
 |
|
|
|
 Yuyuan Garden, a place of peace and comfort in the heart of bustling Shanghai, dates back to the fabled Ming Dynasty. Now a popular tourist destination, Yuyuan began as a private garden created by Pan Yunduan, who spent almost 20 years - and all of his savings - to build a garden in order to please his parents in their old age. That is why he called this garden "Yuyuan" - because "yu" in Chinese means "peace and health".
During the past 400 years, Yuyuan, although restored and reopened several times, was most often in disarray. Due to the decline of Pan's family after Pan Yuduan's death, Yuyuan gradually fell into disuse. Although the garden was improved by the local signiors, several civil conflicts in the mid-19th century caused great damage. In 1956, after Shanghai's liberation, the city government reconstructed the garden and refurbished its mien and beauty as in the old days. Yuyuan Garden was finally reopened to the public in 1961, and the State Department declared it a national monument in 1982. Now Yuyuan Garden attracts countless visitors at home and abroad every year.
The present-day Yuyuan occupies an area of two hectares (5 acres) and is built in a style associated with the renowned Suzhou gardens, which are characterized by an exquisite layout, beautiful scenery and artistic architecture. Each pavilion, hall, stone and stream in the garden expresses the essence of South China's landscape design from the Ming and Qing dynasties.
There are more than 40 scenic spots scattered throughout the garden, which is divided into six parts by five boundary walls. The six scenic areas include the Grand Rockery, the Ten Thousand-Flower Pavilion, the Hall of Heralding Spring, the Hall of Jade Magnificence, the Inner Garden, and the Lotus Pool.
The Grand Rockery is the most elaborate, venerable and glorious rockery in southeastern China. Approximately 2,000 tons of stone were used to build this 14-meter-high rockery, which features perilous peaks, cliffs, winding caves and gorges, all designed to give people a sense of visiting a real, great mountain.
To the east of the Ten Thousand-Flower Pavilion is the Dragon Wall. The white wall is decorated with a dragon's head and paved with scale-like tiles, creating the illusion that a huge, wandering dragon cruises in the garden, keeping it safe and peaceful. The dragon was designed with only four claws, not five like the dragons in the royal palaces, as a way of avoiding irreverence and rebellion in the feudal society.
The Hall of Heralding Spring is located in the eastern part of Yuyuan garden. This pavilion was built in 1820, the first year of the Emperor Daoguang's reign. From September 1853 to February 1855, it served as the base of the Society of Little Swords (the Xiaodao Hui), which led an uprising against the Qing dynasty and occupied Shanghai for 17 months. Today, weapons and coins made by the Society of Little Swords are exhibited in this hall. The Shanghai city government named it the Callan Educational Base in 1994.
The Hall of Jade Magnificence is a study entirely furnished with rare rosewood pieces dating to the Ming Dynasty.
The Inner Garden is a smaller version of Yuyuan Garden, created by combining the east garden and west garden in 1956. Its elegant rockeries, ponds and walls give the Inner Garden a delicate and exquisite beauty.
Standing beside the Lotus Pool, you can see groups of red cyprinoids swimming - a relaxed and happy view that will leave an indelible impression of peace and tranquility.
Yuyuan Garden is a representative of the classical architectural style and is acknowledged as an architectural miracle in the region southeast of the Yangtze River.
Admission Fee: ¥ 30
Opening Hours: 09:10 to 17:00
Recommended Time for a Visit: Two and a half hours
Bus Route: 11, 126, 926, 66 |
|
|
|
|
|
