Introduction

Ningbo is the birthplace of the story of Butterfly Lovers which was the inspiration for Liangzhu Culture Park, the first large-scale love theme park, covering an area of 300 acres. The legend of the Butterfly Lovers is a tragic love story, one of China's Four Great Folktales, which has been known for over 1600 years in China. It is called the "Oriental Romeo and Juliet" in Korea, Japan, Europe and America. One of the most important legends in Chinese history, it has proven that the Butterfly Lovers is not simply a legend but has a place in reality.

Excavations in 1997 of the renowned Liang Shanbo Temple and other archaeological findings in the Yinzhou District of Ningbo indicated that the Butterfly Lovers may have really existed. Liangzhu Culture Park was then constructed around the archaeological site of the Liang Shanbo Temple built in 397 AD. The construction of the park was based on the tragic love story, dotted with pavilions, terraces, mansions and other scenes from the story including Kwan-yin Hall, Spouse Bridge, Lotus Pond, Nine Dragon Pool, the White Butterfly Lovers sculpture and Wansong Academy.

Butterfly Lovers cultural monuments suh as the lovers’ sculptures, the tomb of Liang Shanbo, the  Spouse Bridge and of course butterflies can be seen everywhere in the park. Today, the lovers’ sculpture clings to each other in the Music Square seeming to invite you to step into this holy place of love.