The main lake from the west side. Seer photo, 2002.
The idyllic
Grand View Garden was built 1984-1988 and is based on the description in the 18th century novel
A Dream of Red Mansions (Hongloumeng) by Cao Xueqin (17l5-l763).
The novel is considered the best of the Qing Dynasty and is one of the four great classics of Chinese literature. It tells of the aristocratic Jia family and the feudal society of the day. The story follows the lives of Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu, Chinas Romeo and Juliet. Central to the story are a series of events that cause the wealthy family to build a beautiful garden and a series of events that happen in that garden which tell the tale of the Jia family and the fate of the young lovers.
Cheerful Red Court. Seer photo, 2002.
What has happened here is that life has immitated art; the Grand View Garden of
A Dream of Red Mansions now exists just as described in the novel, including the Bamboo Lodge (Xiaoxiangguan), the Cheerful Red Court (Yihongyuan), the Paddy Fragrance Cottage (Daoxiangcun), and nine others in addition to many walkways, courts, paths, ponds, streams, and even the grotto.
The Secret Grotto. Seer photo, 2002.
Visiting the garden and strolling along its paths is to simultaneously be transported back to the historical truth of the Ming and Qing Dynasties and into the accurate fiction of
Dream of Red Mansions.
Seer photo, 2002.
This is a wonderful place to visit, but be sure to read the book first!
Click to view the book at Amazon.com
On September 3, 2002, the Peoples Bank of China, issued a set of colorful gold and silver commemorative coins depicting scenes from
A Dream of Red Mansions. The set of six coins consists of one gold and five silver, all of them legal tender in China. The obverse of each coin bears a portrait of the author Cao Xueqin, with the name of the country and the issuing year.
On their reverse, the 1/2-ounce gold coin displays the scene of
Xiangyun Drunk in Sleep, four 1-ounce silver coins portray
Yuanchun Visits Her Parents, Xichun Painting, Xifeng Manipulates Power, and
Baochai Swatting Butterflies respectively, which are all well-known scenes in the novel. The five-ounce silver coin features the scene of
Girls at an Evening Banquet on its reverse. The denominations of the coins are also shown on the reverse.
The 120-episode television version of
A Dream of Red Mansions is described at
this Chinese-language web-site.
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