Rediscovering Beijing's Old Summer Palace

In China, the destruction of Yuanmingyuan ("the garden of perfect brightness") or the Old Summer Palace in Beijing is seen as a national tragedy.

Remains of Western-style architecture in Yuanmingyuan.

In 1860, the Anglo-French expedition forces burned down this exquisite resort meant for Manchu royalty of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) during the Second Opium War (1856-60).

But now there are efforts to discover more about this magnificent garden. And archaeologists, with the help of paintings and historical files, are trying to get a better picture of this landmark.

In a project to the east of the Yuanmingyuan ruins, the remains of Ruyuan, an exquisite garden in typical Jiangnan style (which refers to areas in East China on the southern banks of the Yangtze River), was unearthed.

The 19,000 square meter garden is a replica of Zhanyuan, a garden from Nanjing, in eastern Jiangsu province, and it was built following an edict by Emperor Qianlong (1711-99).

The garden, completed in 1767, was called Ruyuan, which means "a garden just like Zhanyuan".

Huge and almost intact bases of buildings have been found at the site other than a garden with paths paved in colorful stones.

"It was a surprise to find the foundation so well-preserved," says Zhang Zhonghua, an archaeologist from the Beijing Research Institute of Cultural Heritage and leader of the Yuanmingyuan project.

"Only some scattered and broken sections were visible before the excavation."

For example, a 1 meter high foundation of the Yanqing Hall is there, besides a 1.4 meter part underground, says Zhang.

"The deep foundation indicates that the hall was grandiose," says Zhang.

The 322 sq m hall was the main building in Ruyuan.

The discovery of ceramic tiles that are hollow also indicate that Ruyuan was equipped with a central heating system.

The excavations also show that there was an artificial lake in Ruyuan and special equipment to regulate water flow.

As a result, the emperors were able to take a boat on entering this garden to a pier by the Yanqing Hall.

Zhang's team is also analyzing seeds found in the area to find out what kind of flowers used to blossom in Ruyuan.

Zhang says that when compared with the Forbidden City, which emphasized formal rituals, Yuanmingyuan was a place where the emperors could relax.

"The patterns on walking paths in Ruyuan are irregular, which shows the rulers' casual lifestyle," he says.

"We even found prototype of a modern urban road network, like today's relief roads and roundabouts that show advanced design."