Ai Qing Hall

Ai Qing Hall

Ai Qing Hall is a cultural heritage conservation unit of Jiangsu Province.

Ai Qing Hall is located at No. 7 Wangxima Lane, Gusu District, Suzhou, within the residence of the Wan family. It is a typical residential courtyard with garden-style features, originally built in the late Qing Dynasty. It is said to have been the villa of Ren Daoguang, the River Conservancy Commissioner during the Guangxu era, and later came into the possession of the Wan family, hence it is also known as the Wan Family Garden.

Facing south, it was originally laid out in three routes and four courtyards. Upon entering through the main gate, one would successively pass through the central entrance hall and sedan-chair hall. Further inside, there is a five-bay building on both the central and western routes. The highlights of this residence and garden include the eastern garden pond and the study garden in the southeast corner.

The current built-up area is 2,340 square meters. The central and western routes each retain one five-bay building, while although the garden pond in the eastern route no longer exists, its structures remain. The flower-basket hall is three bays wide (10.4 meters) and 10 meters deep, featuring a full hall of verandas, with lattice windows and hanging lattices all carved from ginkgo wood. The waterside pavilion is also exquisitely decorated.

A corner of the study forms its own courtyard, covering nearly 300 square meters, complete with a hall, corridors, rockeries, and plants, arranged in a winding and layered fashion. The study is surrounded by lattice windows and low windows, offering scenic views on all sides. A small earthen mound is piled against the east wall, topped with a lake-rock cave and flower stands. The study is connected by corridors on both the north and south sides; one can exit through the south door of the study, walk along a diagonal corridor to a square pavilion, and then follow a winding path up the hill, through caves, and back down. Landscape architecture expert Liu Dunzhen pointed out in his book "Classical Gardens of Suzhou" that the rockery in the southeast corner of the garden is of high artistic quality and is worth preserving.

It was listed as a Suzhou Municipal Cultural Heritage Conservation Unit in 2009, and in March 2019, it was designated as part of the eighth batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Heritage Conservation Units by the provincial government.

Further Reading:

· Eighth Batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Heritage Conservation Units