San Shui Spring

San Shui Spring

San Shui Spring is one of Jinan’s “Seventy-Two Famous Springs.” It is located within the Pearl Spring compound, north of the Qing Dynasty Governor’s Office Hall, a municipal-level key cultural relic protection site. It is recorded in the Jin Dynasty’s Inscribed Stone of Famous Springs, the Ming Dynasty’s Poems of the Seventy-Two Famous Springs, and the Qing Dynasty’s Record of the Seventy-Two Springs. The spring earned its name because its waters surge vigorously, creating swirling ripples that gather and then disperse. In 1981, the spring pool was renovated to be 1.6 meters in both length and width, and 2 meters deep, with stone-lined banks and an added stone railing. The inscription “San Shui Spring” on the southern railing slab was written by Li Yu’ang, then Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Provincial People’s Congress. The water in the pool is crystal clear and transparent.

The spring water is so clear that even facial hair can be distinguished. The reflection of sunlight, clouds, pavilions, and green willows in the water creates a picturesque and profound scene. A poem praises it: “The Pearl Spring flows eastward, its waters winding; ripples dance and drift, coming and going. From time to time, guests come to wash their hats here; the square pool mirrors purely, free of any dust.”