Xuanwu Lake

Xuanwu Lake covers around four hundred hectares in the middle of Nanjing, pressed against the Ming city wall on its western side with Purple Mountain rising beyond the eastern shore. Five islands, linked by causeways and bridges, divide it, planted with willows, cherries and lotus. Under the Ming the lake was closed to the public and used to store the empire's household registers, the yellow registers recording population and land across the country, kept on the islands in guarded archives. It became a public park in 1911. Boats cross between islands, the lakeside path is used constantly for exercise, and lotus covers large areas in July and August.

History

Geologists trace the lake to the shifting of tectonic plates that raised Mount Yanshan, while a legend credits Emperor Sun Quan, who settled in the Nanjing area in the 3rd century, with having it dug and filled. Its name comes from a legend of the Southern dynasties about a black dragon seen in the lake, shaped like a tortoise and a snake and called Xuanwu, the Black Turtle-Snake. In the Six Dynasties period the imperial family hunted and trained here, and under the Song dynasty the lake was used for naval exercises, which earned it the name Military Rehearsal Lake. At the start of the Ming dynasty the Yellow Register Archives were built on it, and it became an imperial garden and forbidden ground. It was made into a park in 1911, after the end of the Qing dynasty, renamed Continental Park in 1928 and officially named Xuanwu Lake Park in 1935 (Wikipedia, Xuanwu Lake).

What's there

• The five islands - linked by causeways and planted with willows and cherries.
• The wall backdrop - the Ming city wall along the western shore.
• The lotus beds - flowering across the lake in July and August.
• The boats - crossings between islands and around the lake.

When to go

March to May for cherry blossom and September to November for mild weather; lotus flowers in July and August but the heat is severe. The park is free and open long hours, and mornings bring local exercise groups.

Good to know

The lake is a city park and busy at weekends. Boat hire and some island attractions charge. Nanjing's summer humidity makes the exposed lakeside walk uncomfortable from June to September.

Nearby

The city wall runs along the shore; Nanjing railway station is on the northern side.