The famous marble boat of the Empress Dowager

Probably the most interesting place in the neighborhood of Peiping is the Summer Palace on the banks of Lake Kun-ming-hu or Lotus Lake, about ten miles west of Peiping.

The marble boat is one of the most amazing buildings in the Summer Palace. It is not a boat, but a pavilion — though at a little distance it has all the appearance of a real sampan. The sub-structure is marble while the super-structure is wood, painted to resemble marble.

[Photo provided to China Daily/Keystone View Company]