Tiger Hill, Suzhou
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Tiger Hill (; Suzhou Wu: Hou chieu, ) is a hill in
Suzhou Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trade ...
,
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. It is a
tourist Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mo ...
destination that is known for its natural environment and historic sites. The hill's name is said to come from the fact it looks like a crouching tiger. Another legend states that a white tiger appeared on the hill to guard it following the burial of King Helü. The hill is also sometimes referred to in parallel with "Lion Mountain", another hill near
Suzhou Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trade ...
which resembles a sitting lion.


History

According to the Historical Records, the King of Wu Helu was buried on the hill, called then "the Hill Emerging from the Sea". The legend goes that three days after his burial a white tiger appeared squatting on the hill. Hence the name. It has an elevation of over and covers about . Tiger Hill boasts impressive rocks, deep dales, three matchless scenes, nine suitable occasions for enjoyment, 18 scenic spots, and changing scenery at all times. No wonder it has been an awe-inspiring sight in the area south of the Lower Yangtze. The Yunyan Temple Pagoda and the Sword Pool are well-known features of the hill. With a history going back more than 1,000 years, the simple, archaic and imposing Yunyan Temple Pagoda, also known as the Second Leaning Tower on earth, stands aloft at the top of the hill, serving as a symbol of ancient
Suzhou Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trade ...
for years, The Tomb of the Wu King Helu under the Sword Pool has remained an unsolved mystery for two and a half millennia. The story goes that the great Jin master
Wang Xizhi Wang Xizhi (; ; 303 AD361 AD) was a Chinese calligrapher, politician, general and writer during the Jin Dynasty (266–420), Jin dynasty. He was best known for his mastery of Chinese calligraphy. Wang is sometimes regarded as the greatest Chinese ...
traded his calligraphy for lovable geese from the Taoist Abbot. The windy vale and cloudy spring are said to make the visitor reluctant to leave. File:Tiger Hill Yunyan Ta Pagoda.jpg, Yunyan Ta File:Tiger Hill Suzhou 2004 07 25.jpg, Thousand People Rock File:Tiger Hill Penjing Garden.jpg, Penjing Collection File:Sword pond tiger hill suzhou 2004 07 25.jpg, Sword Pond File:Double well tiger hill suzhou 2004 07 25.jpg, Double well File:Lu yu well tiger hill suzhou china 2004 07 25.jpg, Hanhan Well


Tourism

The hill has been a tourist destination for hundreds, if not thousands, of years, as is evident from the poetry and calligraphy carved into rocks on the hill. Its features include: *Sword-Testing Rock: a
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
in two pieces that was supposedly cleaved cleanly by a
legend A legend is a Folklore genre, genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human valu ...
ary
sword A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...
of extraordinary sharpness. *Spring of Simplicity and Honesty: a well that, according to legend, first appeared as a spring to an exhausted monk carrying water up the entire length of the hill. * Yunyan Ta: a
pagoda A pagoda is an Asian tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist but sometimes Taoist, ...
that stands seven stories high and leans more than from the perpendicular at its highest point. *Sword Pond (Jianchi): a small rectangular pond, beneath which a treasure of some 3,000 swords are believed to have been buried; It is believed that the Wu King Helu was buried next to the lake wall. Efforts excavating the site were made in the 1950s, but eventually were stopped because the archeologists found the Leaning Pagoda's foundations resting on the site. *Lu Yu Well: a well attributed to
Lu Yu Lu Yu (; 733–804) or Lu Ji (陆疾), courtesy name Jici (季疵) was a Chinese tea master and writer. He is respected as the Sage of Tea for his contribution to Chinese tea culture. He is best known for his monumental book ''The Classic of ...
, author of the first book on tea. *Thousand People Rock (): a rock-based plaza at the bottom of the leaning tower plaza. Legend says after the burial of Wu King Helu, his son, the successor of the throne, commanded the murder of some thousand craftsmen who were involved in his father's burial in order to conceal the exact location of the grave. *Penjing/Bonsai Collection and Museum. *Wanjing Villa: contains more than 600 bonsai and has two display areas, a tree stump bonsai and water-stone bonsai.


See also

*
List of Chinese gardens This is a list of Chinese-style gardens both within China and elsewhere in the world. Greater China This list is organized by region within the Greater China region, roughly following the structure laid out by Maggie Keswick in ''The Chinese Gar ...
*
Penjing ''Penjing'', also known as ''penzai'', is the ancient Chinese art of depicting artistically formed trees, other plants, and landscapes in miniature. Penjing generally fall into one of three categories: * Shumu penjing (樹木盆景): Tree penjin ...
*
Suzhou Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trade ...


References


External links


More Tiger Hill Photos
{{coord, 31.337531, N, 120.576167, E, display=title, type:landmark Tourist attractions in Suzhou AAAAA-rated tourist attractions Gusu District