{"product_id":"kyoto-gardens-masterworks-of-the-japanese-gardene","title":"Kyoto Gardens: Masterworks of the Japanese Gardener's Art","description":"\u003cp\u003e\"Bring the art and beauty of Japan to your garden with inspiration from Kyoto Gardens.\" --HGTV Gardens By design, Kyoto's gardens possess a unique ability to provoke deep contemplation and joy in equal measure. This book is a labor of love from master photographer Ben Simmons and longtime Kyoto-based writer Judith Clancy. It contains lyrical images and poetic essays describing Kyoto's most famous gardens--most of them now UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including: Kyoto's Old Imperial Palace Garden: A massive walled complex filled with flowering plants, trees and buildings which served as the official residence of the Japanese emperor for over 500 years before 1868 and is now a public park. Heian Jingu Shrine Garden: Constructed on the site of the ancient capital and filled with lush greenery, ponds, rocks, bridges and pavilions which float above the water, providing a sense of tranquility and natural beauty. Ginkaku-ji Pure Land Garden: An earthly paradise featuring a massive truncated mound of packed sand that is resculpted by hand daily, this site was originally designed as a private villa by one of Kyoto's rulers then turned into a Zen Buddhist temple upon his death. Kinkaku-ji Estate Garden: Perhaps Kyoto's most recognizable sight, a Golden Pavilion perched on the edge of a tranquil pond on whose smooth surface are reflected beautiful rocks and cypress trees placed all around it. Ryoan-jin Zen Rock Garden: The purest expression of a world in miniature, expressed as a sea of raked gravel with islands of natural stone and moss set in its midst, walled off from the outside world to provide a place for meditation and contemplation. Saiho-ji Moss Garden: Famed for its moist and soft, shimmering green covering of moss, this unique estate was designed in the 14th century and radically altered the art of the Japanese garden. Tofuku-ji Zen Garden: An ancient temple site which contains some of the best examples of a new \"contemporary\" gardening style pioneered by Mirei Shigemnori in the early 20th century, featuring enormous rocks set in a sea of raked gravel and irregular checkboard squares set in a soft bed of moss ringed by azalea bushes. Plus two dozen other masterful gardens! Simmons' sensitive photos present a fresh, contemporary look at these timeless gardens while Clancy's graceful descriptions provides historic, aesthetic and cultural context. This new edition has been updated and revised, with many new photographs added.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tuttle Publishing","offers":[{"title":"New","offer_id":52204914671898,"sku":"N9784805315965","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0911\/9462\/2234\/files\/9784805315965.jpg?v=1768347797","url":"https:\/\/honnomoribooks.com\/products\/kyoto-gardens-masterworks-of-the-japanese-gardene","provider":"Honnomori Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}