A delightful old garden with plenty of surprises
By Jin Rong and Wang Jie |
April 30, 2012, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
JIADING District features many scenic spots but few of them can compare to Qiuxiapu Garden, a traditional Chinese garden with rockeries, streams, ponds and a pleasing variety of plants and flowers.
Built in the middle of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Qiuxiapu Garden originated from three private gardens of the Gong, the Jin and the Shen families. The City's God Temple was later built within its grounds. "Pu" means garden and the name "Qiuxia," literally meaning sunset cloud in autumn, comes from a poem by Wang Bo, a renowned poet during the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907). It reads "The sunset cloud flies with a lonely wild duck, and the autumn river shares a hue with the vast sky." Qiuxiapu is a delicate and elegantly arranged garden.
The garden is divided into several sections including the temple, the peach blossom pond, cloud watching pavilion and clear mirror pond. The most famous attractions are a limestone from the Taihu Lake called "Mizhi Nang" and a stone bridge called "Shequ Bridge."
"Mizhi Nang," which literally means a bag will produce rice juice, is in front of the Pingshan Hall. It is said the rock would leak milky rice juice during gloomy weather. During the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression some intellectuals were afraid Japanese soldiers would steal this rock and they purposely covered it with lime and hid it in rockery to keep it safe.
When Japanese soldiers invaded Qiuxiapu, a Japanese official studied the garden closely but he didn't find "Mizhi Nang." The rock then disappeared from public sight for more than 50 years.
The "hunt" for "Mizhi Nang" never stopped and in 2001 collector Wang Guisheng found it based on an old photo from the 1930s.
The stone bridge is on the south bank of the peach blossom pond. On first sight, the bridge made of one single stone doesn't seem very special.
However, it was a sight to see. The name of the bridge "Shequ" was given by Lou Jian, one of the four famous scholars in Jiading in 1621. More than 200 years later in 1838, the name was re-carved, which later became vague again as time passes by. In 1921, it was carved again according to the rubbings and was inlaid in the stone wall standing next to the bridge.
Innovative product designs
An air purifier called U-life uses five layers of activated carbon to purify the air. It can create anion negative ion to help rid the air of bad odors. The purifier also has a cute and lovely shape.Designers from Outofstock Design Studio showed a bonsai installation, inspired by the Japanese animated film "Laputa: Castle in the Sky," at 2012 Singapore Furniture Design Week. The designers used foil paper and lichen to imitate small islands that float in the air, in hopes of raising awareness about environmental protection.This innovative chandelier can be used as a light, as well as a plant holder. Usually indoor plants can't live well due to the lack of sunshine. However, this chandelier will enable the photosynthesis process to occur.
Built in the middle of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Qiuxiapu Garden originated from three private gardens of the Gong, the Jin and the Shen families. The City's God Temple was later built within its grounds. "Pu" means garden and the name "Qiuxia," literally meaning sunset cloud in autumn, comes from a poem by Wang Bo, a renowned poet during the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907). It reads "The sunset cloud flies with a lonely wild duck, and the autumn river shares a hue with the vast sky." Qiuxiapu is a delicate and elegantly arranged garden.
The garden is divided into several sections including the temple, the peach blossom pond, cloud watching pavilion and clear mirror pond. The most famous attractions are a limestone from the Taihu Lake called "Mizhi Nang" and a stone bridge called "Shequ Bridge."
"Mizhi Nang," which literally means a bag will produce rice juice, is in front of the Pingshan Hall. It is said the rock would leak milky rice juice during gloomy weather. During the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression some intellectuals were afraid Japanese soldiers would steal this rock and they purposely covered it with lime and hid it in rockery to keep it safe.
When Japanese soldiers invaded Qiuxiapu, a Japanese official studied the garden closely but he didn't find "Mizhi Nang." The rock then disappeared from public sight for more than 50 years.
The "hunt" for "Mizhi Nang" never stopped and in 2001 collector Wang Guisheng found it based on an old photo from the 1930s.
The stone bridge is on the south bank of the peach blossom pond. On first sight, the bridge made of one single stone doesn't seem very special.
However, it was a sight to see. The name of the bridge "Shequ" was given by Lou Jian, one of the four famous scholars in Jiading in 1621. More than 200 years later in 1838, the name was re-carved, which later became vague again as time passes by. In 1921, it was carved again according to the rubbings and was inlaid in the stone wall standing next to the bridge.
Innovative product designs
An air purifier called U-life uses five layers of activated carbon to purify the air. It can create anion negative ion to help rid the air of bad odors. The purifier also has a cute and lovely shape.Designers from Outofstock Design Studio showed a bonsai installation, inspired by the Japanese animated film "Laputa: Castle in the Sky," at 2012 Singapore Furniture Design Week. The designers used foil paper and lichen to imitate small islands that float in the air, in hopes of raising awareness about environmental protection.This innovative chandelier can be used as a light, as well as a plant holder. Usually indoor plants can't live well due to the lack of sunshine. However, this chandelier will enable the photosynthesis process to occur.
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