蘇州城西、太湖之濱的吳中第一古鎮(zhèn)木瀆鎮(zhèn)，在明清時期容納了30多處私家園林，這真是個奇跡。木瀆園林的主人身份各異，有文人雅士、退休官員、富商巨賈，因而這30多處園林各園有各園的個性，但由于同一方水土的浸染，因而各園又形成了精雕細(xì)琢、幽深雅致的共性。

嚴(yán)家花園是木瀆造園藝術(shù)最高的園林。它在數(shù)百年內(nèi)幾易其主，首先是乾隆年間詩寫得好、連皇帝也佩服的江南名士沈德潛安頓在這里；接著是道光年間的木瀆詩人錢端溪購下此園，取名“端園”；光緒時此園又轉(zhuǎn)讓給木瀆首富嚴(yán)國馨，并由香山幫建筑大師姚承祖率能工巧匠重新修葺，于是這座花園更加顯得婉轉(zhuǎn)多姿：它中間是住宅，春夏秋冬四園如群星拱衛(wèi)。春園由一株枝繁葉茂的古玉蘭點題，書屋山房掩映其間，夏園以“接天蓮葉無窮碧，映日荷花別樣紅”的荷花命名，夏日荷風(fēng)四面，暑氣盡消，令人心曠神怡。秋園則含丹桂拾趣之意境，桂花綻放之際坐于臨水的軒亭，沏上一杯清茶，微涼的風(fēng)送來陣陣芳香，加之偶爾幾點金色的花朵飄落杯中，誰還能辨是天上人間?冬園自然用“暗香浮動月黃昏”的梅花助興了。紅英綠萼一片爛漫，五曲梁橋婉轉(zhuǎn)有致，又有一堵粉墻作烘托，別有一番韻致。四園獨立成景又由長廊貫通，亭臺樓閣錯落，假山池沼映襯，漫步其間步移景換，裁一角，剪半邊，都是一幅完美的圖畫，就算讀它千遍也不會厭倦。

虹飲山房則是木瀆最大氣的園林。主人好酒，乾隆名臣劉墉戲稱其為“虹飲”，虹飲山房因此得名。山房也像它的主人一樣曠達爽朗，房與房之間的距離拉得很開，寬闊敞亮，讓人看了心胸舒展。虹飲山房兼“溪山風(fēng)月之美，池亭花木之勝”，據(jù)說乾隆下江南必到此處游歷。天子入民間，虹飲山房也沾染了皇氣。園中的二層古戲臺飛檐翹角，儼然立于中庭，臺前是一片開闊的空地，兩側(cè)連以廊廡，應(yīng)是當(dāng)年皇帝和臣僚們品茗聽?wèi)蛑帯Ｕ麄€木瀆只有虹飲山房有這般氣派的戲臺，它印證其“民間行宮”的輝煌。

古松園是清末木瀆四大富翁之一蔡少漁的舊宅，因后花園一株高逾十米、樹齡過五百多年的明代羅漢松而得名。古松園微形大境，充分利用曲折之妙，空間雖小卻讓人覺得幽深無盡。園中別具一格的雙層雕花長廊把亭臺樓閣連成一個整體。漫步其中，近樹遠(yuǎn)山，別有一番風(fēng)情。

那榜眼府第就規(guī)矩多了，前堂、中堂、臥室、書房、花園等沿著軸線一字排開。如果說其他的木瀆園林是行書，那么榜眼府第便是楷書了。府主人馮桂芬是晚清著名政治家，為學(xué)講究“經(jīng)世致用”，他的府第也就帶了點主人的脾氣，講究實用。馮宅建筑以磚雕、木雕、石雕為特色，尤以石雕《姑蘇繁華圖》為鎮(zhèn)宅之寶。此圖以清人徐揚在乾隆年間所繪《盛世滋生圖》為藍(lán)本，由木瀆民間藝人流暢地鐫刻在八塊首尾相接的靈巖山硯石上，細(xì)膩生動地展現(xiàn)了一幅姑蘇富庶勝景長卷。

木瀆鎮(zhèn)的每一個園子在設(shè)色上都力求清雅，白的墻，黑的瓦，亭臺樓閣的漆色也在歲月中沉潛變?yōu)橐环N接近黑色的老栗，沒有彩畫的熱鬧，也沒有金碧的奪目，但它卻襯得綠樹更綠、鮮花更鮮，事事物物都更純粹。木瀆的每一個園子又都注重打造細(xì)節(jié)。游目所至，即可看見鐫刻著的詩文圖畫，讓空間的每一處都氤氳著墨韻書香。隨地形高低鋪設(shè)的爬山廊，讓線條更加曲折多變，用卵石在地面鋪出各色花卉人物圖案，讓藝術(shù)充滿各個角落，用漏窗勾勒出一窗窗的風(fēng)景，更讓人覺得每一眼都是圖畫。木瀆的假山石是各園的主角，或依水岸，或列庭院，或成洞穴，或成山峰，或獨立成景，或?qū)盈B成屏，或樸拙厚實，儀態(tài)萬方，多姿多彩!

家園，家園，家有了個“園”才夠得上完美與理想。擁有2500年文化的木瀆，用匠心營造這許許多多美麗的家“園”，堪稱我國一絕!園林木瀆，這是歷史的禮物，讓我們知道什么是生活的藝術(shù)，什么是藝術(shù)的生活。

Mudu， a Town of Ancient Gardens

By Ye Yanli

Located on the Taihu Lake and west of Suzhou City， Mudu Town has been distinguished as Number One Town in southern Jiangsu Province for a long time. During the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties， more than thirty private gardens in the town were built， modified， and owned by scholars， retired government officials， business tycoons and others. Showing different personalities， these gardens， however， have something in common: exquisite workmanship， elegance and subtlety.

Yan's Garden showcases the finest workmanship of all. During its history of several hundreds of years， the ownership changed hands several times. Two poets owned the garden respectively in the Qing Dynasty. Then Yan Guoxin， the richest local tycoon of his days， bought it in the remaining years of the Qing Dynasty. He engaged a brilliant architect and builder and his assistants to modify the garden. They worked to create what the garden looks like today. The living quarters sit in the center of the garden， with four mini gardens like satellites around it. The miniature gardens are named after four seasons respectively. The Spring Garden has a single towering magnolia tree to highlight the theme; the Summer Garden is blessed with a large lotus pond; the Autumn Garden features sweet-scented osmanthus trees; the Winter Garden is dotted with plum-blossom trees. The four gardens are connected by a long corridor， intermingled with pavilions and rockeries. Each step amazingly reveals a new scene， faithfully reflecting an architectural philosophy practiced by garden builders in this part of China.

If Yan's garden is most poetic and elegant， then Hongyin Villa is the most spectacular garden in town. Because the owner had a penchant for wine， Liu Yong， a prominent minister of the Qing Dynasty， jokingly referred to the way he boozed as rink like a rainbow The owner fancied the casual remark so much that he later adopted it as the name for his private garden. The garden is known for its magnificent openness. Buildings are spaced widely with sceneries as natural and gorgeous as Xanadu. It is said that the private garden offered so many beautiful things within its miniature landscape that it became a must for Emperor Qianlong of the Qing dynasty whenever he toured the south of his large empire. The Son of Heaven brought some royal touches to the villa. In the garden stands a two-storied theater stage， with upturned eaves. In front of the stage is a broad yard flanked by a corridor on each side. Of all the gardens in Mudu， only Hongyin Villa boasts such a stage. It testifies to the imperial splendor in a private garden.

The Ancient Pine Garden was once owned by Cai Shaoyu， one of the four major tycoons in town in the last years of the Qing Dynasty. The garden was named after a 10-meter-tall pine towering behind the house. The pine can be traced back to more than 500 years ago in the Ming Dynasty. The garden， though tiny in size， displays a magnificent style through ingenious architectural design. A unique double-layer carved corridor connects pavilions and other buildings. Ambling slowly through the garden offers a unique view of trees nearby and hills in the distance.

The Bangyan House highlights another style. Bangyan was a proper Chinese noun for the runner-up in a palace examination. Feng Guifen， the owner， was a prominent statesman of the later period of the Qing Dynasty. His lifelong philosophy was to apply knowledge to practice. The house reflected his style. The front and central halls， study， and living quarters were all built along a central axis. The scholar's house is characterized by fine sculptures on bricks， wood， and stone. The most famous sculpture was a copy of a painting about Suzhou during the years of the Qing Dynasty. Artists sculpted the painting onto eight pieces of stone. The sculpture， renamed as Prosperous Suzhou， was regarded as the symbol and treasure of the house.

All the gardens in town were designed in a style that pursued elegance. The walls are white and tiles on the roofs are black in a fine contrast. Time has deprived the pavilions and halls of their flamboyant colors. With their original dazzling reduced to a kind of darkish brown， however， the trees and flowers around them are set off in a better contrast. It can be said that time has purified these gardens. Visitors today may be more easily attracted to wonderful details in the gardens: carved poems and paintings can be seen almost everywhere， corridors zigzag over undulating slopes， grounds are paved with pebbles showing flower patterns and human figures， windows capture landscape and fragment it into mesmerizing pictures， and rocks extend to small streams， or form into caves， or stand as a solitary hill， or pile one upon another like a screen.

These ancient gardens showcase the 2，500-year history of Mudu， and relate what the ancients believed about art， life， home， man and nature.

(Translated by David)