World Cultural Heritage: The Classical Gardens of Suzhou (4)

The Lingering Garden is located outside Changmen Gate in Suzhou and was originally built during the Ming Dynasty. During the Qing Dynasty, the garden was named Hanbi Mountain Resort or Liuyuan, and later renamed to the Lingering Garden. The Lingering Garden covers an area of about 50 mu, and water and rockeries cover a large part of its central area and are the essence of the whole garden. The major buildings in the garden are Green House, Bright Clear Mansion, Distant Greenery Pavilion, Zigzag Stream Tower, and Refreshing Breeze Pavilion. The Lingering Garden tops other Suzhou gardens in the number of buildings. In the Lingering Garden, the significant way of dealing with spaces between various kinds of architectural forms fully shows the superb techniques and wisdom of ancient garden designers.

Located within the Loumen in Suzhou, the Humble Administrator's Garden was built during the Zhengde reign period in the Ming Dynasty (1506-1521 A.D.). It is the largest garden in the city and also a representative masterpiece of the Suzhou gardens. The Humble Administrator's Garden covers an area of 62 mu, and most of its current sceneries were formed during the late Qing Dynasty (at the beginning of the 20th century). Water is the main structural theme of the Humble Administrator's Garden and about one fifth of the garden is covered by water. Various kinds of pavilions, terraces, halls and towers were also built surrounding the water. The major buildings in the Humble Administrator's Garden include the Hall of Drifting Fragrance, the Pavilion of Snow Fragrance and Colorful Clouds, the Pavilion of Waiting for Frost, the Stay and Listen Pavilion, the 18 Stramonium Flowers' Hall and the Hall of 36 Pairs of Mandarin Ducks. The layout and design of Humble Administrator's Garden is superb, and the garden also boasts an elegant and natural artistic style.