Weifang Shihu Garden | A delicate northern garden

Shihu Garden, also known as Ding Family Garden, is located at No. 49, Hujiapaifang Street, Weicheng District, Weifang City, Shandong Province, with an area of about 2000 square meters. Because it occupies very little land, it was metaphorically referred to as 'ten rulers' by people at the time, hence the name 'Shihu Garden'. Shihu Garden is the Gao's Village in the 86 version of 'Journey to the West' and the filming location of the TV series 'Red Sorghum'. Shihu Garden in Weifang city is known as the 'Pearl of Eastern Shandong'. Shihu Garden was built in the 11th year of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty (1885), and it was the private garden of Ding Shanbao, the richest man in Weixian. Its predecessor was the former residence of Hu Bangzuo, the Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment in the Ming Dynasty. Because of its small area, it was later named 'Shihu'. The plan of Shihu Garden is rectangular, composed of three ancient architectural axes in the middle, west, and east. The central axis buildings and their courtyards are the main part of the garden. The main building in the garden, Yanxiang Tower, was built in the Ming Dynasty. It has three openings, two floors, and the walls are embedded with more than 90 authentic inscriptions of calligraphers and painters such as Zheng Banqiao and Jin Nong. It is one of the gardens in the northern region of China with the delicate characteristics of Jiangnan gardens. In 1988, Shihu Garden was announced by the State Council as the third batch of national key cultural relics protection units.