Moon Lake (Ningbo) Explained

The Moon Lake, also known as the West Lake, is a man-made lake in Haishu District, Ningbo, Zhejiang. It is a municipal conservation zone for history and culture in Ningbo.

Main features

• Moon Lake Bridge – also known as Central Lake East Bridge, a stone arch bridge. It was firstly built in Song and current bridge was built in Qing.^[1]
• Central Lake Temple – Central Lake Temple is located in Southeastern Huayu, which was firstly established in Zhiping period in North Song Dynasty. The temple is referenced in a poem by Sima Guang.^[2]
• Shuize Stele – Shuize Stele is a stone stele which is used to measure water level in Pingqiao River near the Moon Lake. It was firstly built in South Song Dynasty and protected by a pavilion which was built during the Qing Dynasty.^[3]
• He Mijian Shrine – He Mijian Shrine was firstly built in South Song Dynasty in order to worship He Zhizhang, a poet in Tang.^[4]
• Guandi Temple – Guandi Temple was built in 3rd year of Chongzhen of Ming Dynasty, currently used as the Ningbo Buddhism cultural exhibition centre.^[5]
• Buddhist Jushi lin – Buddhist Jushilin (Householders) is a Buddhist temple in the Moon Lake. It was built in 21st year of Zhiyuan in Yuan Dynasty (AD 1284). It was destroyed in 1956, and rebuilt in 1989.^[6]
• Yanyu House Yanyu House is a famous library in Ningbo. It was built by Xu Shidong, an academician of East Zhejiang, local choreography and a librarian.^[7]
• Li's House – The Li's House is a house of ancestors of the Chinese American Li Zongkui, originally located in Tianyi Square region. It was moved when the construction of Tianyi Square.^[8]
• Yintaidi – The house of Tong Kui, a vice ambassador of Tongzhengsi. Currently, it is the Ningbo Officials' House Museum.^[9]
• Ambassy of Goryeo – The reception place was for ambassadors, businessmen and overseas students. The building was rebuilt on the originally place.^[10]

Literary reference

A Ningbo-born novelist Qu You wrote a fiction called Peony Dengji (牡丹灯记, Janpanese: Botan Dōrō also known as 怪談牡丹灯籠 Tales of the Peony Lantern) (in the collection of Jiandeng Xinhua). It describes a love story between ghost and a man during Fang Guozhen period. The story took place at the Moon Lake. Japanese scholar Koyama Issei identified many of the locations, including Central Lake Temple, Central Lake East Bridge, Zhenming Ridge and Xuanmiao temple, that would fit geographically and architecturally of the places mentioned in the story.^[11] The story was adapted as one of three Kaidan tales in Japan.^[12]

Notes and References

1. https://archive.today/20120905173152/http://www.nbwb.net/detail.asp?id=5212&NodeCode=0001 宁波古桥：含情脉脉月湖桥
2. http://hszx.haishu.gov.cn/news_read.asp?ID=21237 古湖心寺保护纪实
3. Web site: http://www.zjww.gov.cn/unit/2006-02-21/51591120.shtml . zh:浙江省文物局 - 水则碑 . 2019-02-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111103012207/http://zjww.gov.cn/unit/2006-02-21/51591120.shtml . 2011-11-03 . dead .
4. http://hszx.haishu.gov.cn/news_read.asp?ID=109614 历史悠久的月湖贺秘监祠
5. http://202.107.212.146/homepage/page01-01-01.php?id=1062031190&theme=1 月湖景区又添文化内涵 关帝庙将重启大门
6. http://www.gotoningbo.com/jqjd/nblyjd/200905/t25851.htm 宁波居士林
7. http://www.haishu.gov.cn/PEO/info.asp?ID=139621 文物保护点-徐时栋故居(烟屿楼)
8. https://archive.today/20120906022812/http://www.nbwb.net/detail.asp?id=14309&NodeCode=00020004 共青路：湖畔风雅悠然在
9. https://archive.today/20120909154706/http://www.nbwb.net/detail.asp?id=2980&NodeCode=00050003 银台第宁波官宅博物馆
10. https://archive.today/20120903174727/http://www.nbwb.net/detail.asp?id=1833&NodeCode=00080009 高丽使馆
11. 小山 一成，「牡丹燈記」文学地理，大学紀要，2000-03-25
12. http://www.pp6.cc/zixun/neiye_shjs_2907.html 宁波月湖的湖心寺与传奇《牡丹灯记》