Humble Administrator's
Garden in Suzhou, China
Originally
built in 1509 during the Ming Dynasty, the Humble Administrator's Garden
started as a private garden for the Imperial Envoy and poet Wang Xianchen. The
legend goes that Wang longed to retire from the stresses of official life, and
the garden served as the perfect place for him to create a new quiet life.
Built upon the ruins of the Dahong Temple,
the expansive landscape contains 48 different buildings with 101 tablets, 40
steles, 21 precious old trees, and over 700 Suzhou-style penjing. Not only is
it considered by many Chinese horticulturists as one of the finest gardens in
all of southern China, the verdant escape was also named a UNESCO World
Heritage Site.