As one representative building of the Old Summer Palace, Dashuifa, the fountain in the ruins of Xiyang Building, is known to all. But why is it named Dashuifa? Da means big in Chinese, so what does the “Shuifa” mean? Actually, “Shuifa” is the translation word of fountain which means the magic of water. So, Dashuifa means big fountain.

The fountain in the Old Summer Palace had stone lions to made waterfalls and there was a chrysanthemum-shaped spray fountain. There was a deer at the center of the fountain and there were 10 dogs rushed at it. The water sprayed from the dogs to the deer. This pattern came from a Roman mythology about Diana and Actaeon.

The tale recounts the unfortunate fate of a young hunter named Actaeon, who was a grandson of Cadmus, and his encounter with chaste Artemis, known to the Romans as Diana, goddess of the hunt. The latter is nude and enjoying a bath in a spring with help from her escort of nymphs when the mortal man unwittingly stumbles upon the scene. The nymphs scream in surprise and attempt to cover Diana, who, in a fit of embarrassed fury, splashes water upon Actaeon. He is transformed into a deer with a dappled hide and long antlers, robbed of his ability to speak, and thereafter promptly flees in fear. It is not long, however, before his own hounds track him down and kill him, failing to recognize their master.

Unfortunately, Dashuifa was destroyed by the Anglo-French Allied Forces in the 1840s. Now visitors can see the fountain only by the old pictures.