Classical Gardens of Suzhou 苏州古典园林

许林玉

蘇州古典园林以其古、秀、精、雅、多而享有“江南园林甲天下，苏州园林甲江南”之誉。这些建造于11至19世纪的园林，以其精雕细琢的设计，形成了独特而系统的景观形式，其规划设计、施工技术以及艺术效果对中国乃至世界的园林绿化发展产生了重大影响。

入选时间（Date of Inscription） 1997 年

遴选标准（Criteria） （i）（ii）（iii）（iv）（v）

遗产面积（Property ） 11.922 公顷

缓冲区面积（Buffer zone） 26.839 公顷

档案编号（Dossier） 813 bis

“Classical Chinese garden design，which 1 ）seeks to recreate naturallandscapes in miniature， is nowherebetter illustrated than in the nine gardensin the historic city of Suzhou. They are generally 2）acknowledged tobe masterpieces of the genre. Dating from the 11th ～ 19th century，the gardens reflect the profoundmetaphysical importance of naturalbeauty in Chinese culture in theirmeticulous design.” This is theassessment of the classical gardensof Suzhou made by UNESCO.

It inscribed the classical gardensof Suzhou， represented by the Humble Administrators Garden， LingeringGarden， Net Masters Garden and the Mountain Villa with EmbracingBeauty on the World Heritage List in 1997. In 2000， UNESCO approvedthe extension of the inscribed property of the classical gardens ofSuzhou to include the Canglang Pavilion， the Lion Grove Garden， theGarden of Cultivation， the Couples Garden Retreat， and the Retreat &Reflection Garden.

The classical gardens of Suzhou date back to the 6th century BCEwhen the city was founded as the capital of the Wu Kingdom. 3）Inspiredby these royal hunting gardens built by the King of the State of Wu，private gardens began 4）emerging around the 4th century and reachedits first peak after the development during the Qin and Han Dynasties.Gardens by the scholars prospered in the Sui and Tang Dynasties，and various rich human elements resulted because different gardenbuilders who created them had their own interpretation of the naturalmountain and water gardens. Today， more than 50 of these gardensare still in existence， nine of which， mentioned above， are regarded as the finest embodiments ofChinese “Mountain and Water”gardens. They are noted forthe combination of exquisitecraftsmanship， artistic eleganceand rich cultural implications. Theprosperity of classical gardens has a necessary connection with thewarm and cozy natural climate and prosperous and stable life of thepeople living in Suzhou. These gardens lend insight into how ancientChinese intellectuals were living freely within an urban environment.

Garden masters from each dynasty adapted various techniques toartfully simulate nature by skillfully adapting and utilizing the physicalspace. As the embodiment of aesthetics of Chinese scholars forseveral centuries， these gardens paved the way for the freehand styleof mountain and water gardens which had far-reaching influences onfuture generations. The main bodies of the Canglang Pavilion， the LionGrove Garden， the Humble Administrators Garden， and the LingeringGarden are excellent representatives of Chinese private gardensfrom different periods and they emerged during the Song， Yuan，Ming， and Qing Dynasties 5）respectively. Walking through thesegardens is like viewing vivid elegant scrolls of Chinese mountain andwater paintings of different historical periods.

Generally， the garden-building art of the classical gardensof Suzhou is 6）demonstrated in the perfect arrangement of suchelements of mountains， rocks， water， and wood to 7）attain the beauty beyond natural mountains and water. These private gardens，concealed in the prosperous city and dotted with rooms， pavilions，halls， and waterside pavilions， create miniature worlds in limitedspaces and finally form the perfect freehand style integration of theideas and pursuits of Chinese ancient scholars and natural mountainsand water.

1） seek v. 寻找; 寻求

2） acknowledge v. 承认

3） inspire v. 启发; 启迪；赋予灵感；鼓舞

4） emerge v. 浮现；显现

5） respectively adv. 依次为; 分别

6） demonstrate v. 证明；证实

7） attain v. 得到；（通常经过努力）获得

词组加油站

in existence 存在

be regarded as 被认为

be noted for 因……而闻名

pave the way for 为……铺平道路

be dotted with 用……点缀

“没有任何地方比历史名城苏州的九大园林更能体现中国古典园林设计‘咫尺之内再造乾坤的理想。苏州园林被公认是实现这一设计思想的杰作。这些建造于11 至19 世纪的园林，以其精雕细琢的设计，折射出中国文化取法自然而又超越自然的深邃意境。”这是联合国教科文组织对苏州古典园林做出的评价。

1997 年，该组织将以拙政园、留园、网师园、环秀山庄为代表的苏州古典园林列入世界遺产名录。2000 年，该组织又将沧浪亭、狮子林、艺圃、耦园、退思园一并作为扩展项目列入世界遗产名录。

苏州古典园林的历史可追溯至公元前6 世纪，当时苏州这座城市是吴国的都城。受吴王建造的皇家狩猎园林的启发，私家园林于公元4 世纪开始涌现，后经秦汉发展后达到第一个高峰。直至隋唐，文人园林在此兴起，浓郁的人文气息也因造园者的不同，而被赋予在自然山水园林间。如今，仍然留存的园林有50 余处。其中，之前提及的九大园林被认为是中国“山水园林”的最佳典范。它们集精湛的工艺、典雅的艺术风格和丰富的文化内涵于一体，并因此闻名于世。古典园林的兴盛与苏州温暖舒适的气候和富庶安稳的生活有着必然的联系。

通过这些园林，我们可以深入了解中国古代知识分子如何在城市环境中悠然生存。

历代园林大师采用各种技术，通过巧妙地改造和利用物理空间，艺术性地模拟自然。苏州园林属于山水园林，浓缩了数个世纪中国文人的审美情趣，其写意风格对后世影响深远。沧浪亭、狮子林、拙政园和留园的主体部分分别建成于宋、元、明、清四个朝代，是中国不同时期私家园林的杰出代表。漫步于这些园林中，就好似沿着历史的脉络，在翻看一轴生动雅致的中国山水画卷。

总而言之，苏州古典园林的造园艺术表现为对山、石、水、木等要素的完美运用，以达到超越自然山水之美。这些深藏于繁华都市中的私家园林，处处点缀着轩、亭、阁、榭，成就了方寸天地间的万千世界，最终形成中国古代文人思想与自然山水完美融合的写意之境。