The Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics Memorial Hall is located on the southeast side of Slender West Lake, just across the road from Siwang Pavilion. It is transformed from the Western Temple where Jin Nong, one of the Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics, lived in his later years. Here, you can learn about the lives and works of the Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics. It is suitable for tourists who like calligraphy and painting and are interested in cultural attractions.
The Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics generally refer to a group of painters with innovative spirits in Yangzhou in the Qing Dynasty. They are represented by Zheng Xie (Zheng Banqiao) who is good at painting bamboo, Jin Nong with a bumpy life, and Luo Pin who is good at painting ghosts. The specific eight painters of the Eight Eccentrics are not unanimously agreed upon. According to various records, there are at least fifteen people before and after. So ‘eight’ can be regarded as a numeral or an approximate number. The main building of the Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics Memorial Hall runs from north to south. The gate is at the southern end. Entering the gate, the first thing you see is the large iron pot in the center of the lawn. It has a history of more than 1,500 years. Behind it is the main hall of the Western Temple in the Ming Dynasty, which is built of precious nanmu. The main hall is now the main exhibition hall of the memorial hall. Remember to look up. The beautiful colored paintings on the beams are mostly relics of the Ming Dynasty. In the middle stands the statue of the Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics. Around it is an exhibition, presenting the lives of the Eight Eccentrics in pictures and texts, and displaying their calligraphy and painting works. However, most of the calligraphy and paintings are replicas. Passing through the main hall, there is a nearly 800-year-old towering ancient ginkgo tree in the courtyard behind. Walking straight ahead is the Li Yaru Calligraphy and Painting Exhibition Hall. Usually, the calligraphy and paintings of Li Yaru, the successor of the Eight Eccentrics, are exhibited. Sometimes temporary exhibitions are also held. Turning left is Jin Nong’s residence, restored according to his abbot’s room. In the middle is the living room, and on both sides are the studio and bedroom. At that time, the Western Temple had declined, and it can be seen that Jin Nong’s residence was very simple. Then heading east is the part of the East Garden. Decorated with rockeries, it is arranged like a Jiangnan garden. You can see the pond ‘Crane Pond Peeking at Ice’, which is named after Jin Nong’s poem ‘Crane in the pond peeking at ice’ expressing noble aspirations. Walking south, visit the Bamboo Spring Pavilion and the well used by Jin Nong to draw water in the pavilion, and the Five Dynasties stone pillar. Finally, return to ‘Exquisite Inscriptions in the Stele Corridor’ on the east side of the main hall. Look carefully in the stele corridor and you can find the famous calligraphy work ‘Rarely Confused’ by Zheng Banqiao. Walking 50 meters east along the alley outside the Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics Memorial Hall, there is a thousand-year-old Tang locust tree protected by a fence. It is the place where the story of ‘A Dream in Nanke’ in the ‘Biography of the Prefect of Nanke’ in the Tang Dynasty took place.Opening hours: Open all year round from 08:30 to 17:00; open from 08:30 to 21:00 during the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day.
Preferential policies supplementary note: 1. Slender West Lake, Daming Temple, Tangcheng Site, Han Prince Guangling’s Tomb Museum, Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics Memorial Hall: 1. Children under 6 years old (including 6 years old) can enter the park free of charge with valid certificates; those with a height of 1.
1. Free admission for children under 4 meters (including 1.4 meters). Half-price tickets are available for minors aged 6 years (excluding 6 years old) to 18 years old (including 18 years old) with valid certificates.
2. Holders of ‘Disability Certificate’, ‘Active Military Certificate’ (including armed police), ‘Honorary Certificate for Retired Cadres’, ‘Preferential Treatment Certificate for Veteran Cadres’, ‘Preferential Treatment Certificate for the Elderly’, ‘Preferential Treatment Certificate for Parks’, ‘Military Wife Certificate’ in Yangzhou City, retired military cadres and the elderly over 70 years old (including 70 years old) (with valid identity documents), disabled soldiers, ‘Moral Model Certificate’, ‘Hero Model Certificate’, ‘Press Card’ (issued by the State Press and Publication Administration), and those with a valid ‘Yangzhou Tourism Scenic Spot (Point) Annual Card’ can visit the scenic area for free.
