Shantang Street

Shantang Street

The ancient city of Suzhou is a renowned water town in the Jiangnan region, crisscrossed with waterways and bustling streets. As the late Tang poet Du Xunhe wrote: “When you arrive in Gusu, you’ll see homes nestled by the river. Ancient palaces leave little open land, yet countless bridges span the streams.” Among Suzhou’s many lanes and alleys, the scenic Shantang Street is honored as the “No.1 Street in Gusu.” The reasons are threefold: first, Shantang Street is an ancient street with over 1,100 years of history; second, its layout best represents the characteristics of Suzhou’s traditional streets; third, it is associated with many notable figures and historical events.

Shantang Street was first built during the Baoli era of the Tang Dynasty. In 825 AD, Bai Juyi was appointed as the Prefect of Suzhou. Shortly after taking office, he rode in a sedan chair to visit Tiger Hill and noticed that the nearby canals were silted up and the waterways blocked. After returning to his office, he immediately consulted relevant officials and decided to dig a canal and build a road around Tiger Hill. The canal stretches about seven li from near the Duseng Bridge at Changmen in the east to Wangshan Bridge at Tiger Hill in the west, hence the common name “Seven-Li Shantang Leading to Tiger Hill.” This canal connects to the Grand Canal at Changmen. A raised embankment was constructed along the canal, which became Shantang Street. The digging of Shantang Canal and the construction of Shantang Street greatly facilitated irrigation and transportation, making the area a bustling hub of commerce. The people of Suzhou were deeply grateful to Bai Juyi. After he left office, they referred to Shantang Street as Bai Gong Di (Bai’s Embankment) and built the Bai Gong Temple in his memory.

Shantang Street connects Suzhou’s bustling commercial district at Changmen in the east with the Huqiu Town, home to many flower growers, and the scenic Huqiu Mountain in the west. Since the Tang Dynasty, it has been a hub for goods distribution and a gathering place for merchants from north and south. During the Qing Dynasty’s Qianlong era, the famous painter Xu Yang created the long scroll painting “Prosperous Suzhou” (also known as “Gusu’s Prosperity”), depicting a village, a town, a city, and a street in Suzhou — with the street portrayed being Shantang Street. It showcases the vibrant market scene of “merchandise piled high like mountains, flowing crowds like clouds, shop signs shining bright as brocade.” Cao Xueqin also referred to the area around Changmen and Shantang as “one of the most prosperous and elegant places in the mortal world” in the first chapter of “Dream of the Red Chamber.”

Shantang Street can be divided into eastern and western sections. The eastern section extends from Changmen Duseng Bridge to Bantang Bridge, mostly lined with shops and residences. Various stores sit side by side, with the area around Xing Bridge being particularly lively and bustling. The western section of Shantang Street runs from Bantang Bridge to Huqiu Mountain. This part gradually approaches the outskirts, where the canal is wider than in the east. Along the riverbanks, there are either shady trees and blooming grasses, or reeds and wild reed boats. Scenic spots here include Pujiao Bridge and Yefangbang, as well as historical sites such as the “Tomb of the Five Martyrs” and the “Tomb of Ge Xian.” The “Tomb of the Five Martyrs” houses the remains of five righteous men, including Yan Peiwei from the late Ming Dynasty, who led a civilian uprising to protest the arrest of the Donglin Party member Zhou Shunchang by the eunuch Wei Zhongxian’s faction. They eventually sacrificed their lives heroically. Further west lies Huqiu Mountain, known as the “No.1 Scenic Wonder in Wu Region,” with its mountain peaks, pagoda shadows, and forested landscape that captivate visitors.

Shantang Street has always been beloved by literati, poets, and notable figures throughout history, leaving behind numerous poems in its honor. Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty held a special fondness for Shantang Street, mentioning it directly in nine of his poems. In 1761, for his mother’s 70th birthday, Qianlong specially replicated a Suzhou Street alongside the Jade River near Zizhuyuan in Beijing, modeled entirely after Shantang Street. In 1792, he built another Suzhou Street in the northern part of Longevity Hill in the Imperial Garden Qingyi Yuan (later renamed the Summer Palace), also based on Shantang Street. Both of these Suzhou Streets were later destroyed in wars, but in 1986, the Suzhou Street in the Summer Palace was reconstructed, bringing back the charm of Seven-Li Shantang to the capital.

Shantang Street has also long been a venue for diverse folk activities, often hosting dragon boat races, temple fairs, seasonal celebrations, and flower festivals. It has also been featured in numerous folk legends and literary works, including the Suzhou storytelling ballads “The Jade Dragonfly,” “The Three Smiles,” and “The Legend of the White Snake.” In “The Jade Dragonfly,” Jin Guisheng meets the young nun Zhizhen at Fahua Nunnery on Shantang Street. In “The Three Smiles,” Tang Bohu encounters Qiu Xiang — the famed “Three Smiles That Touched the Heart” — at Huqiu, while the scene where Qiu Xiang takes a boat down the mountain and Tang Yin hires a boat to follow her to Wuxi, where he sells himself into servitude, also takes place on Shantang River.