The "Number One Water Town in China" — Luzhi (lù), as highly praised by Fei Xiaotong, former Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress. As an outstanding example among China's ancient water towns, Luzhi Ancient Town indeed lives up to its reputation, boasting a civilized history of 2,500 years. Especially remarkable are its ancient culture, scenic sites...
The Ye Shengtao Memorial Hall is located to the west of Baosheng Temple, separated from the temple by just a wall. This is the place where the literary figure, educator, publisher, and social activist Ye Shengtao once worked. In the spring of 1917, at the invitation of his classmates Wu Binruo and Wang Boxiang, he came to teach at the “Wu Gao” and lived in Luzhi for over four years. In February 1988, Ye passed away in…
Passing through the stone archway courtyard of Wansheng Rice Shop, you arrive at the “Leisi Hall,” where old-style rice farming tools and grain processing equipment from the Jiangnan region are displayed, forming a unique “Farming Tools Museum” with distinct water town charm. The development of Chinese farming tools evolved from primitive slash-and-burn implements to those combining copper, iron, wood, and bamboo, eventually leading to small-scale handicraft production...
Commonly known as Zhangling Mountain, Zhanglin Garden is located about 1.5 kilometers southwest of the town and is said to be the tomb of Zhang Cang, the Han Dynasty chancellor. Although no tomb of Zhang Cang was discovered at Zhangling Mountain, many cultural relics were unearthed. In the early 1950s, local farmers excavated jade bracelets, jade artifacts, jade rings, jade tubes, perforated jade axes, and numerous pottery pieces from the Songze and Liangzhu cultural periods...
Lingering Temple is a renowned thousand-year-old Buddhist temple in the Jiangnan region. The clay wall arhats in its Antiquities Museum are said to be the work of Yang Huizhi, the master sculptor of the Tang Dynasty. Originally named Baosheng Monastery, the temple was first built in the second year of the Tianjian era of the Liang Dynasty (503 AD), boasting a history of over 1,500 years. Emperor Wu of Liang, Xiao Yan, was a devout Buddhist and immediately began an ambitious temple construction campaign after ascending the throne...
Luzhi Jiangnan Cultural Park is located in the southeast of Luzhi Ancient Town and is closely connected to it. Covering an area of over 150 acres, it is a classical-style garden integrating leisure, entertainment, and sightseeing, featuring the charm of the Jiangnan water town. The Jiangnan Cultural Park has a total investment of 230 million RMB, with over 10,000 square meters of ancient architectural space and 52,500 square meters of garden landscapes...
The Luzhi Historical Relics Museum is located in the southeast of the Jiangnan Cultural Park. It displays artifacts unearthed during two excavations of the Chenghu Site in Luzhi in 1974 and 2003. Based on the relics revealed through archaeological excavation and the precious artifacts unearthed, the museum vividly showcases the production...
The Water Town Women's Costume Museum is located within the Jiangnan Cultural Park. Through interactive designs and live performances, it showcases the unique charm of water town women’s costumes. It also provides a systematic introduction to the Luzhi water town women’s costumes using text, images, and physical exhibits. These include the two-tone “head wrap,” the distinctive “patchwork jacket” with large lapel buttons…
Xiao’s Residence is located about 30 meters south of Hefeng Bridge (also known as Zhongmei Bridge), at No. 6 Zhongshi Shangtang. Built in the 15th year of the Guangxu reign during the Qing Dynasty (1889 AD), it covers an area of over 1,000 square meters and is a well-preserved residential building from the Qing era. Originally constructed by a Qing-era martial arts scholar surnamed Yang, the residence was later sold to the prominent local Xiao family, hence its name. Xiao Bingli, who taught at the “Fifth High…”
Aida Ridge is a mountain pass between Yaofeng Mountain and Baohua Mountain. It gets its name because the mist from Taihu Lake often meets the mountain winds here, frequently shrouding the area in clouds and fog. There’s also a legend that wild ducks gathering at Taihu Lake every year pass through this ridge, hence it’s also called “Duck Step Ridge.” The scenic area now features thousands of acres of ecological…
Dengwei’s plum blossoms are the finest under heaven — nowhere in sight is without plum trees. As early as the beginning of the Western Han Dynasty, Guangfu pioneered the history of plum cultivation. The Ming Dynasty scholar Yao Ximeng once wrote in his essay “Miscellaneous Poems on Plum Blossoms”: “For the abundance of plum blossoms, none can surpass the Wu region, and among them, the hills of Guangfu are the very best.” At that time, the annual plum blossom excursion to Dengwei had already become a tradition in the Suzhou-Shanghai area. Originally…
The tomb of Qian Yuanyao is located in Jiulongwu, Hengshan, Qizi Village, Mudu Town, Wuxian. Qian Yuanyao was originally named Chuan Yao and styled as Dehui. He was the sixth son (some say fourth) of Qian Liu, the King Wusu of the Wuyue Kingdom. During the Five Dynasties period, various regional powers vied for dominance, among which the Qian family of Wuyue was one of the stronger factions. Qian Liu, who declared himself king over thirteen prefectures and established his capital in Hangzhou, appointed his sons to guard different territories. He assigned Qian Yuanyao as the Military Governor of Zhongwu, tasked with defending Suzhou. Later, Qian Yuanyao was also granted titles such as the Censor-in-Chief, Chancellor, and Prince of Guangling. After Qian Yuanyao’s death, his son Qian Wenfeng succeeded him. Father and son ruled Suzhou for over sixty years, constructing water conservancy projects, encouraging land reclamation, and implementing many policies favorable to production. These efforts led to significant advancements in agriculture and handicrafts at the time, boosting the economic prosperity of the Suzhou region.
The Tomb of Mao Cheng is located in Tianchi Mountain Valley, Cangshu Town, Suzhou. Period: Ming Dynasty. The current tomb covers an area of 1,100 square meters, faces west with its back to the east, and has an earthen mound standing 1.5 meters high with a base diameter of 2 meters. It is surrounded by a blue stone wall. The tomb passage retains a pair of stone horses; although their heads are slightly damaged, they still stand with heads raised and tails drooping, exuding vigor and elegance. There is also a pair of civil official statues...
Luzhi is known as the hometown of ancient bridges, with a bridge density of 48.3 bridges per square kilometer. Originally there were seventy-two and a half bridges, and now forty remain. The vast majority were built before the Qianlong era of the Qing Dynasty, with some dating back to the Song and Yuan dynasties. The bridges come in various styles—arched, round-arched, and beam-type—while their arches range from single to multiple spans. They are constructed from granite, Wukang stone, bluestone, and more, varying greatly in size...
The Zhao Residence in Luzhi is located at No. 207 Shangtang Street, Dongshi, Luzhi, Wuzhong District, dating back to the Qing Dynasty and the Republican era. The residence is situated in Luzhi Town, Wuzhong District. Originally designed as a seven-courtyard complex facing south along a single axis, four of its courtyards still remain relatively intact. There is a dedicated river dock along the street. The first courtyard’s building, once a shop, features five bays across the facade, with a sparrow-gazing eave adorned with melon-leaf cloud carvings. The second courtyard contains the main hall, which has an interior layout of inner four bays with a front porch and rear step area, featuring intricately carved mountain-mist clouds depicting cranes and auspicious clouds, as well as beam-embracing clouds. The hall is partitioned with crabapple-patterned lattice windows. In the small west side room’s front courtyard, there is an ancient well; the east side room was originally a service alley, though its well has been filled in. The third courtyard’s round-log female hall has a damaged front gate tower. The fourth courtyard is a Western-style bungalow surrounded by corridors, where an ancient stone stele from the 12th year of the Jiaqing reign still remains. The original residence was owned by “Zhao the Monk,” a native of Shengpu, who co-founded “Chen Futong Firm” with a person surnamed Chen. Fan, a Republic-era town mayor who graduated from Peking University, also had his sister living here at one time.
The Wang Tao Memorial Hall is located at No. 6 Zhongshi Xiatang Street in the ancient town of Luzhi. Originally the old residence of the Shen family, it was converted into a memorial hall in 1998 for visitors to pay tribute. Qian Juntao, a renowned contemporary painter and calligrapher, inscribed the name of the hall. The Wang Tao Memorial Hall consists of one main axis with three courtyards. Its principal structures include the gate tower, the front hall (Wang Tao’s Life and Achievements Exhibition...
The ancestral hall is located to the west of the former site of the Wansheng Rice Shop in Luzhi Town. After the liberation, the hall was converted into a warehouse for the grain management office. The Shen Family Ancestral Hall is the largest and most well-preserved existing family ancestral hall in Suzhou. It consists in sequence of a screen wall, an entrance hall, a front hall, a rear hall, auxiliary rooms, and a residential building. The front hall is seven bays wide, measuring 25.6 meters, with a depth of 11.4 meters, featuring an inner four-bay structure with a front double-eave corridor...
Jidian, Zhudun, and Haodun — The Haodun Han Tomb is located in Cuqiao Group, Shenan Village, Sheyanghu Town, Baoying County, Yangzhou City, Jiangsu Province. The mound is square-shaped, measuring 58 meters from north to south and 60 meters from east to west, covering an area of 3,480 square meters. It has a pot-covered shape, with a current height of about 3 meters. The northwest corner has been damaged due to soil extraction by local villagers. The earthen mound is covered with crops and also contains...
Protected area of the Former Residence of Wang Maohong: north to the back wall of the building, south to the courtyard’s southern wall; west to the eastern wall of the main gate passageway, east to the eastern wall. Controlled zone: north to Jiangjia Lane, south to 30 meters beyond the main building; west to 20 meters beyond the western wall of the main building, east to Xisan Yuan Lane. …
The former residence of Cao Qiqin is located at No. 338 Dongguan Street in the ancient city of Yangzhou. It was the home where the martyr Cao Qiqin was born and grew up. Cao Qiqin, styled Jianyu, also used the aliases Lushiying and Chen Junhao. He was the leader of the first Chinese Communist Party organization in the history of Yangzhou. In 1906, Cao Qiqin was born into a clerk’s family in Yangzhou, and in 1927…