The Marble Boat. The original boat, built in 1755 from stone, was destroyed during
the Second Opium War. It was restored in 1893 by the Empress Dowager Cixi, one of
China’s most powerful women. She paid for the reconstruction of this extravagant
folly with funds intended to modernize the Imperial Navy.
The superstructure is actually made from wood, painted to look like marble.