Atlas of China
Master of the Nets Garden 网师园Wǎngshī Yuán
4A scenic area · National heritage site · Suzhou, Jiangsu
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Days to budget
- Half a day
- City
- Suzhou
- Region
- Jiangsu
- Type
- Heritage
- Listed as
- 4A scenic area, National heritage site
About Master of the Nets Garden
A small residential garden first laid out in the Southern Song as an official's library retreat and rebuilt in the Qianlong era by Song Zongyuan, who renamed it after the fisherman, the 'master of the nets', as a symbol of the simple life. Halls, galleries, a rockery and a pavilion are fitted closely around a central pond, with the family residence to the east and a quiet inner courtyard to the west. That courtyard, Dianchun Yi, was the model for the Ming Xuan court built at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; the garden is part of the Classical Gardens of Suzhou World Heritage Site.
How to get to Master of the Nets Garden
On Kuojiatou Lane in the south-east of Suzhou's old city, about 1 km east of the Canglang Pavilion.
Nearby
- Classical Gardens of Suzhou 苏州园林 under 10 km
Whole landscapes of rock, water and pavilion folded into a city block - Zhouzhuang 周庄古镇 30 km
Jiangnan's most famous water town, famed for its Twin Bridges and merchant halls
Also within 20 km: Old Campus of Soochow University 东吴大学旧址 (under 10 km), Canglang Pavilion 沧浪亭 (under 10 km), Twin Pagodas (Luohan Temple) 罗汉院双塔 (under 10 km), Suzhou Confucian Temple (Stone Inscription Museum) 苏州文庙 (under 10 km), Jiachen Lane Brick Pagoda 甲辰巷砖塔 (under 10 km), Pingjiang Road Historic District 平江历史街区 (under 10 km).
On the map
Open Master of the Nets Garden on the illustrated map to see the terrain around it and what else is close, and to add it to a trip.
Open Master of the Nets Garden on the map