Recently, the renowned Suzhou garden known as “Jingsi Garden,” touted as the “number one private garden in Jiangnan,” went unsold at auction with an initial price of 145 million yuan (RMB, the same below).
On September 24th, assets including the Suzhou garden architectural structure “Jingsi Garden” and its garden area, valued at over 145 million yuan, were put up for bankruptcy auction on the Alibaba asset auction platform. The event attracted over 60,000 viewers, but ultimately no one placed a bid, leading to the auction ending without a sale.
According to the auction announcement, the assets under auction belonged to Suzhou Jingsi Garden Co., Ltd., including the Jingsi Garden garden area, with an initial bid of about 145 million yuan, matching the appraisal value, a deposit of 10 million yuan, and a bidding increment of 200,000 yuan.
Located in Songling Town, Wujiang District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province, the asset includes house decor, construction structures, auxiliary facilities, stones, stone materials, and seedlings. The stones specifically refer to engraved stones at locations such as the garden parking lot and Luluxiangge, with an estimated value of around 2.54 million yuan.
Regarding the potential second auction of the garden, auction staff stated on September 25 to Upstream News: “We have not received any notification. The starting price for the second auction may be discounted by more than 20% based on the first auction.”
Jingsi Garden has gone through multiple auction attempts, and this latest auction starting at 145 million yuan is part of the bankruptcy asset liquidation of Suzhou Jingsi Garden Co., Ltd.
According to data from the Qi Cha Cha platform, Suzhou Jingsi Garden Co., Ltd. is the owner of Jingsi Garden. Established in 2016, the company primarily engages in public facility management. It has been listed as a dishonest executor over 50 times, involving over 140 judicial cases. Currently, the company’s shareholder is Zhongjin Commercial Insurance Co., Ltd., holding 100% of shares, with Chen Jinggen as the former shareholder.
Previous reports indicated that due to financial challenges, Chen Jinggen sold the garden along with the stones to China Youth Travel Industry Development Co., Ltd., which jointly established Zhongjin Commercial Insurance Co., Ltd. along with Zhongqing Travel Supplies (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. and North Gold Jin Sales (Tianjin) Co., Ltd.
According to reports from Yingxiang Net, Jingsi Garden is located about 3 kilometers west of Tongli Ancient Town in Suzhou, covering over 100 acres. It was constructed in 1993 over a decade and is recognized as the “number one private garden in Jiangnan.” Since its opening, Jingsi Garden has achieved accolades including being named a National 4A-level scenic spot, a national cultural industry demonstration base, and a renowned Chinese trademark.
Within Jingsi Garden are 36 attractions, including the Heting Bridge, Xiaochuihong, Jingyuantang, Tianxiang Shuwu, Pangshan Caotang, a gallery of scientists through the ages, and a stone poetry corridor. The garden is adorned with a large collection of Lingbi stones, with the “Qingyun Peak” towering over nine meters and weighing 136 tons, setting a record in the Guinness Book of World Records for Lingbi stones. It is known as the “number one stone in the world,” with over 1,600 interconnected holes.
Reports have indicated that Jingsi Garden is open to the public from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM daily and is still operating normally, with an entrance fee of 70 yuan.