It might be pure coincidence that there were forty scenes in Shenstone's garden and forty in the Summer Palace. Yet the use of garden architecture to create scenic features or viewing places for the pursuit of poetic emotions and combining art with nature, is the common dream of garden walkers in China and the West.
主人藉整個園林的景點動線，訴說古羅馬詩人維吉爾的史詩《阿尼亞士》。沈斯東園林裡的四十景，與當時流行歐洲的圓明園四十景，無論是否純屬巧合；以園林建築為景點或觀景點，來追求與自然和諧的「詩情畫意」，則是中西遊園者共享的美夢。