The Peony Pavilion, the gift to Stratford-on-Avon District Council from the People’s Government of Fuzhou Municipality in China, has been completed in Firs Gardens.
Here's the latest from the District Council:
The specially commissioned pavilion has been expertly built by a team of highly skilled Chinese craftsmen, over the last three weeks, supported by local contractor, Edward Brain & Sons Ltd who built the foundations and supplied plant and materials.
Fourteen crates containing all the different components for the pavilion and the hand tools used for the construction were shipped over from China in February for this project.
The Peony Pavilion is made up of lots of intricate details using a variety of materials including timber, stone, clay, slate and some intricate wood carvings.
To accompany the Peony Pavilion there is an ‘Inscription of Peony Pavilion’ – detailing the most popular works of Tang Xianzu, which depicts the affectionate romance between Du Liniang and Lui Mengmei whose love story has been passed down for more than 400 years with Peony Pavilion considered as a token of love.