PLATE VII. 



IKE-NO-NIWA, KIOTO PALACE. 



The Ike-no-Niwa, or "Garden of the Lake," in the grounds of the Imperial 

 Palace at Kioto, may be taken as a characteristic though somewhat imperfect example 

 of a Japanese lake-garden. As the surrounding areas partake of the nature of broad 

 gravelled approaches to the different detached buildings of the palace, the expanse of 

 water lacks the charming and natural environment of verdant hills which distinguishes 

 other gardens of this class. A few boulders, evergreen bushes, and trees fringe the 

 stone-faced banks on the palace side, and prettily carved stone and wooden bridges 

 connect the lake-islets with the shores. These islands abound in curious rocks, and 

 dwarf pine trees trained out over the surface of the water: other handsome scoriated 

 rock masses are scattered in the shallows of the lake. In the background of the 

 view given in Plate VII. may be seen the handsome curved roof of one of the Im- 

 perial buildings, remarkable, like the gardens surrounding them, for their chaste 

 simplicity as compared with the more elaborate and fantastic style which characterises 

 the old castle palaces of the Daimios. This is but a small portion of the extensive 

 grounds surrounding the ancient Palace at Kioto, which consists of several separate 

 blocks, each having its independent garden in varied style. 



