This garden was originally the site of the Fu Garden of Wu Guan, a minister during the Ming dynasty. Gu Wenbin, the Governor of Ningbo-Shaoxing region, purchased the site in 1874 and expanded it. The 0.6 hectare garden is divided by a double corridor into eastern and western sections. The eastern section, the original site of the the Fu Garden, features a compound of courtyards and delicate buildings such as the “Winding Jade Pavilion”, the “All-season Grace Pavilion”, “Su Dongpo’s Lute Chamber”, and the “Rock Fetish Pavilion”. The western section, …

Master-of-Nets Garden (built 18th century onward)
The Master-of-the-Nets Garden, or Wang Shi Yuan, was first laid out during the Sung Dynasty (960-1279) but was later abandoned. It was “rediscovered” in the 18th century by a retired official who restored the gardens. Like many Confucian scholar-officials, he preferred the peace of nature to the wrangling of Court life. He is said to have remarked that he would rather be a fisherman than a bureaucrat. This is the origin of the garden’s name.
Like the Humble Administrator’s Garden, this garden is divided into three …

For centuries, Chinese gardens have displayed a delicate balance between the forces of nature and man’s creations. These luxurious gardens provide a spiritual haven from worldly worries.