The Seiryutei is a tranquil villa retreat at the north of the main gate of the famous Nanzenji Temple in Kyoto. It is situated on the site of the earlier Ryogon'in, which appears in a painting dating from the Edo period, called "Miyako rinsen Meisho-zue" (Famous Places among the Capital's Tranquil Gardens). Special features are the external view of the buildings, created by the great craftsman and dilettante of the early twentieth century, Kitamura Sutejiro, the tea room, and the garden, done by Shoin Ueji (Ogawa Jihei). The garden is designed to incorporate the nearby Higashiyama (eastern mountains) as "borrowed scenery", and contains ancient and still verdant trees. Water is drawn from the nearby Lake Biwa aqueduct to create a murmuring stream. Today the mood of the place is still redolent of the days of yore when, back in 1916, Togo Heihachiro gave it the evocative name Seiryutei, or "Villa of the Pure Stream".
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Seiryutei
The villa retreat at Nanzenji Temple called Seiryutei by Togo Heihachiro.
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