Master of the Nets Garden
In Chinese, 网师园 （Pinyin: wǎng shī yuán), "master of nets" is a respectful way to refer to an experienced fisherman.
The original garden was built during the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and was subsequently abandonned.
In the 18th century a local official "rediscovered", restored and named this garden after an elderly fisherman who had saved the official's daughter from drowning. It is also said that as a retired official he said that he would rather be a fisherman than a bureaucrat, hence the association and the origin of the garden name.
The layout of one of its many courtyards was used by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in creating an area of display for Ming Dynasty artifacts. Among all the gardens in Suzhou, the Master of the Nets Garden is considered the most "balanced" in terms of its use of water, rocks, plants, and timber.
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