Originally known as Jiangmen, located in the eastern part of the city, it was named after the gathering place of various craftsmen. It is said that King Helü of Wu once ordered the swordsmith Gan Jiang to set up a furnace here to cast swords, hence another name, Gan Jiang Gate. Later, it was called ‘Xiangmen’ due to a phonetic change. The gate was filled in at the beginning of the Song Dynasty. On September 27, 2012, with the official completion of the Suzhou Ancient City Wall Protection and Repair Project, Xiangmen also regained its new charm.
The ancient city wall section of Xiangmen starts from Gan Jiang Road in the south and extends to Ouyuan in the north. The newly built section is 370 meters long, plus the northern section ruins, with a total length of nearly 650 meters. The base of the city wall is 12 meters wide, the top is 9 meters wide, and the higher part of the city tower reaches 23.8 meters. This massive structure has a considerable ‘appetite’, with the usage of city bricks reaching 400,000 pieces. Most of them were produced by the Lumu Imperial Kiln, and some were donated by citizens. It is reported that the ancient bricks donated by citizens were used for the construction of the upper part of the water and land city gates. Open all year round from 6:00 to 22:00.Xiangmen Gate
Originally known as Jiangmen, located in the eastern part of the city, it was named after the gathering place of […]
