Suzhou Travel Guide
Jiangsu China >> Suzhou >> Tiger Hill
Tiger Hill
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| Tiger Hill Suzhou |
Tiger Hill (Huqiu) is the most famous sight in Suzhou city, enjoying the reputation of "The first scenic spot in Wu area" by its imposing beauty, including Leisure Spring, Testing Sword Rock, Third Spring, Broken-Pillar-Hall and Mountain Villa Wrapped in Emerald Green etc. With only 36 meters high and an area of 20hectares, you might think it is an an artificial hill, but its history can be traced back to 2500 years ago. The Tiger Hill Pagoda in the park is the landmark of Suzhou city.
A famous Song Dynasty poet, Su Shi said, 'It is a lifelong pity if having visited Suzhou you did not visit Tiger Hill.' This epitomises the general opinion of those who have seen this local beauty spot with its many attractions that we shall endeavour to describe for you.
The Tomb of King He Lu: In 496 BC during the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC - 476 BC), He Lu, King of the Wu perished during the war fought against the Yue. His son buried him within the hill and three days after the funeral a white tiger came and sat upon the grave as though guarding it. From that time on it has been known as Tiger Hill.
Tiger Hill Pagoda: The pagoda stands on the hill's summit and is the Pagoda of the Yunyan Temple. As the oldest pagoda in the vicinity of Suzhou it has come to be a symbol of the city and has the distinction of being China's Leaning Tower. Built during the Northern Song Dynasty (959-961) it is a seven-storey octahedron after the style of the timber pagodas built during the early Tang period. It is 48 metres high (158 feet) and for the past four hundred years has leant 359' to the northwest.
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| Tiger Hill Suzhou |
Sword Testing Stone and Sword Pool: King He Lu was a zealous collector of rare swords and it is said that he tested them upon this stone. The crevice thus made in the rock is the only evidence of the existence of these swords, as it is believed that they were buried beneath the Sword Pool as funerary objects. Another mystery that surrounds the tomb is the whereabouts of the remains of the 1,000 workers who built it and who were put to death upon completion of the task.
Lu Yu Well: Lu Yu was an authority on the art of tea and wrote the first ever book on the subject entitled 'The Treatise of Tea'. As an old man, he lived on Tiger Hill and it was here that he wrote the final part of his book. Lu Yu excavated the well and declared that the water from it was the third best in all China. Consequent upon the research and teaching of Lu Yu tea growing and consumption came to be important factors in the daily life of the citizens of Suzhou.