Yanshuiting, Historic pavilion near Gantang Lake, Jiujiang, China

Yanshuiting is a historic pavilion standing beside Gantang Lake, featuring traditional Chinese architecture with curved roofs and wooden columns. The structure rises in multiple tiers and overlooks water on both sides, creating views across the lake.

The Northern Song scholar Zhou Dunyi named the island Jinyue; his eldest son Zhou Shou built a pavilion beside Li Gong dike during the Xining era. Both pavilions were later destroyed. In 1593 Huang Tengchun, Jiujiang pass governor, built a new pavilion on the Jinyue site and called it Yanshuiting. Destroyed again in 1853 during the Taiping attack on Jiujiang, it was rebuilt from 1868 by monk Guhuai and in 1873 by magistrate Chen Nai.

The name Yanshuiting, "smoke and water pavilion", recalls Zhou Dunyi's island name "Jinyue" (soaking moon) and his eldest son Zhou Shou's pavilion built during the Xining era. The site now also holds a Zhou Yu command platform, added south of the pavilion in 1987, linking the complex to the Three Kingdoms general associated with Jiujiang.

The pavilion lies centrally in Jiujiang and is easily reached by regular bus services that stop within walking distance. Early morning or late afternoon visits work best when sunlight falls lower on the water and crowds are lighter.

The pavilion visitors see today is not the Song original: it was rebuilt in 1593 by Huang Tengchun, destroyed in 1853 during the Taiping attack on Jiujiang, and rebuilt again from 1868 under the monk Guhuai and from 1873 under magistrate Chen Nai. The curved bridge linking it to the shore dates only from 1972, and the Zhou Yu command platform south of the pavilion was added in 1987.