Old Summer Palace, Palace ruins in Qinglongqiao Subdistrict, China.
The Old Summer Palace is a sprawling ruin site with stone fragments, column remnants, and outlines of former pavilions, surrounded by lakes and green spaces. The grounds still show the traces of more than a hundred buildings once scattered across the entire area.
The complex began in 1709 under Emperor Kangxi as an imperial retreat and was expanded over several generations. British and French troops looted and burned the site during the Second Opium War, leaving only a few stone structures standing.
The site takes its name from the Confucian ideal of perfect brightness and served as a venue for ceremonial gatherings. Visitors today can walk among stone columns and foundations that show how Chinese garden art was combined with European facade elements.
Walking through the ruins requires several hours on foot, as individual sections are spread far apart. Sturdy shoes are advisable because many paths are unpaved and cross uneven terrain.
Some of the stone arches and column stumps are marked with burn marks from the 19th-century fire. These charred surfaces were deliberately left unrestored to serve as a reminder of the destruction.
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