Autumn viewing at Zhanzhan Garden.

Zhanyuan is the best-preserved classical garden complex of the Ming Dynasty in Nanjing and the only open palace of the Ming Dynasty. It was once part of the residence of Xu Da, a founding hero of the Ming Dynasty, and the office location of the governors of Jiangnan in the Qing Dynasty. During the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom period, it was the palace of Yang Xiuqing, the Eastern King. Zhanyuan has gone through the Ming, Qing, Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the Republic of China and the contemporary era. Like most gardens in the south of the Yangtze River, it has a complex history and its appearance has undergone changes. The layout of the park is elegant and exquisite, with magnificent ancient buildings from the Ming and Qing dynasties, steep rockery, the famous Northern Song Dynasty Taihu stones, quiet and elegant pavilions, and overlapping peaks.