During
the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty, the Black Kiln was
still in operation and there were two supervisors, one Manchurian and
one Han. The Han supervisor was Jiang Zao, a native of Hanyang, Hubei
province, a Minister of Industry of the court. He was a poet and calligraphic
master.
At the
gate of the temple was a calligraphic work in gold of Taoran by Jiang
Zao and on the temple wall were inset with a rock carving, Ode to Taoranting
that sang in the last two verses:
Sorry that I'm not a painter
To
draw a picture of listening to the cascading spring
In deep Autumn night.
The temple wall was also inset with the calligraphic work Urban Forest
by Wang Yushu.
Most
outstanding of the gardens sights was the grotesque formation of Taihu
Lake rocks designed by Zhang Ran. Zhang Ran designed the rock formations
at such famous imperial gardens as the Yingtai at Zhongnanhai, Changchunyuan
(later the Taoranting Park) and Yuquan Hill.
Southwest
of the gourd-shaped islet was a two-storied pavilion, respectively named
Cloud-painted Tower and Pure-sound Chamber. The pavilion, built during
the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing, was originally at the eastern
bank of Nanhai, the southern lake. Zhou Enlai suggested moving the pavilion
out of Nanhai to Taoranting Park in 1954.
On the
northern side of the Central Island, there is a grave of Gao Junyu,
a labor movement agitator during the period of the Northern Warlords,
who died at the age of 30. The grave stone is inscribed with a poem
by his girlfriend Shi Pingmei:
I'm the sword,
I'm
the fire,
I will live like a lightning,
Die like a fleeting star.
The
couple were buried in the grave when Shi Pingmei died.
Chinatravelkey can add visiting of Taoranting Park on the following Beijing Tour Routes:
Photo of Taoranting Park:
  
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