6. Astor Court was the First Chinese Garden in America
The Chinese Garden Court (also known as Astor Court, Gallery 217), located in the Asian Art Wing, is a recreation of an authentic Ming Dynasty garden from Suzhou. Built into a space that was once a light well to the Egyptian galleries, it was one of the first Chinese gardens to be made outside of China. When the Garden opened in 1981, its koi pond contained twenty-six fish from Suzhou. Each fish represented one of the twenty-five workers, and one chef, who traveled to New York to build the garden. It took this group five months to complete their task, using hand-crafted materials like wood, ceramic, and stone.
Though it seems like a simple space, the garden is full of intentional architectural elements and meaningful symbols. For example, the ceramic drip tiles at the edge of each roof are embellished with various Chinese characters such as “Shou,” which means long life. Every twist and turn brings a new view, as described in this Met Museum video.