Wufu Bridge

Wufu bridge, built before Zhengde in Ming Dynasty, is a single span stone bridge with a span of 7.5 meters and a length of 14 meters. It connects the two sides of the east end of Hong Kong. It was rebuilt during the reign of Guangxu in Qing Dynasty. The bridge is well preserved, and the stone railings are neat. The so-called five blessings are happiness, Jubilee, longevity, wealth and good death. This is the folk's five pursuits and wishes for life. It is used on the bridge as a blessing for the bridge builders. I hope this bridge can bring people not only convenience, but also all kinds of auspiciousness that everyone hopes.

Wufu Bridge

Wufu bridge is located at the head of Weitian village, Weitian Town, Songxi County, Fujian Province. It is a magnificent and characteristic corridor bridge, and the most famous ancient bridge in Songxi County. The word "five blessings" comes from the book of songs, which refers to longevity, precious, health, good morality and good death.

Songxi County, located in the mountainous area of Northern Fujian Province, has many mountains and streams. The bridge has become an important transportation facility to connect the urban and rural areas and inside and outside. Songxi bridge construction has a long history, so far there are still many magnificent, different structures of ancient bridges flying over the stream, between the gullies. Among them, the most spectacular and characteristic is Wufu bridge at the head of Weitian village, Weitian Town, north of Songxi. "The river is surrounded by mountains, while the clouds are surrounded by green and red buildings.". The clear Weitian river is like a rainbow lying on the waves and a magpie bridge. The famous Wufu bridge is flying over it.

Bridge structure

Wufu bridge, also known as baling bridge, is 108 meters long, 5.2 meters wide and 12 meters high. It has four piers and five holes. It runs East-West across the Weitian river. It is the longest Pingliang wooden gallery bridge in Fujian. It connects the north and south sides of the east end of Hong Kong.

The whole body of Wufu bridge is of wood structure. The piers are made of stone blocks, and the beams are made of wood on the piers. The beams are horizontally paved with boards, and the fine sand is used as a cushion, and the stones and bricks are laid on them for pedestrians and vehicles to walk. On the bridge deck, there are 35 pavilions and houses with long corridors. In the middle of the bridge, a pavilion with double eaves and warped corners rises, entitled "saiguan Temple". Bridges, pavilions, carved beams and painted buildings, painted in red and painted in gold, are magnificent. The roof of the pavilion is covered with tiles, and the wings on both sides are covered with three layers of protective shutters, which can block the scorching sun, the wind, the cold and the rain, and protect pedestrians from the hardships of traveling. The railings and pine benches on both sides of the bridge allow visitors to lean on the railings and enjoy the scenery, and let pedestrians have a rest to sweep away the fatigue. It is indeed a "clear and honest road".

The two ends of the bridge are arch stone gates with couplets embedded on both sides. The gate wall is decorated with eight immortals statues and flower brick carvings. The top of the gate has three double eaves and is decorated with fish, dragons, Phoenix and birds, which is quite simple and spectacular.

At the bottom of the bridge, against the backdrop of scales and waves, the skill and wisdom of ancient craftsmen are amazing. The tip of the four ship shaped piers pointing to the upstream of the stream, the water moving pier is static, like four boats carrying the bridge and going against the water.

The tip of the pier is picked up and engraved with eagle's head or javanica's head alternately, which makes the whole pier look like a flying eagle crow. What's amazing is that there is a heavy stone on each hawk's back. Why is it so? We all ask the country elders, but we don't know why. We can only imagine that the bridge builders were worried that the eagle crows would fly away from the bridge, so there was a heavy stone in the town, which made it impossible for them to fly. It's a perfect combination of movement and stillness, lightness and calmness.

The bridge pier is laminated with pine logs, and the whole bridge is supported without a rivet. It is a mystery that the great craft is lost in the history books and in the folk.

major function

Wufu bridge was first built in 1795 A.D. in the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. It has a history of 201 years. Although it has been revived and abandoned for several times, it still retains its original style. It is the longest well preserved CuO bridge in Northeast Fujian. In ancient times, it was an important passage from south to North in dongsanli of Songxi County, and also a place for tea and dried bamboo shoots market trade in Donglu of Songxi County, which played an irreplaceable role in the local economic development. "Anlan becomes the mainstay, Liji wins zhouyu." The couplets on both sides of the South Gate of the bridge artistically show the important role of Wufu bridge at that time. From the worn-out bricks and stones on the bridge deck, we can also vaguely appreciate the grand scene of horse racing and business travel on the bridge.

Historical records

Wufu bridge is a wooden girder bridge structure with pavilions and compound houses, which is called CuO bridge by the folk. It is a representative work of ancient bridge architecture in Northern Fujian. John Li, a famous scholar in the world, once commented that this bridge is a combination of rationality and romance in his great work the history of science and technology in China.

A bridge is a civilization. With its unique cultural taste, Wufu bridge has attracted many literati tourists from ancient times to modern times to visit and recite poems. Bridge in the painting, there is painting in the bridge. Walking into Wufu bridge is like walking into the colorful painting corridor and the time tunnel through history. On the square board between the pillars of each pavilion, there are more than 700 lifelike portraits. The wars and conflicts in the kingdoms of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty and the romance of the Three Kingdoms, the heroic deeds in Shuihu and Shuoyue, the immortals and ghosts in journey to the west, and the gifted scholars and beauties in a dream of Red Mansions A picture is a history, a story. The magnificent picture of modern Chinese history and revolutionary war history is a vivid teaching material for people's patriotic education.

A bridge is a period of history. The eight immortals on the bridge could not resist the disaster of war and flood. More than two hundred years later, the reason why Wufu bridge can still maintain its original style and features is due to the folk customs of Songxi people who build bridges and pave roads for the benefit of Xiangzi. "Songxi County annals" states: "if there is no beam in Sichuan, the government will not repair it", taking the construction of bridges as a criterion for assessing the official achievements. In people's mind, building bridges is a good and virtuous act of "praising farmers in the wild and singing folk songs in the city". In 1983, the Songxi County Government renovated the ancient bridge, which was destroyed during the cultural revolution, according to the ancient style and appearance, and determined it as a key cultural relic to be protected at the county level, and added a bridge protection management station. Since then, the appearance of Wufu bridge has remained unchanged, adding color to the mountains and bringing benefits to future generations.

The origin of five blessings

The word "five blessings" comes from the book of songs, which refers to longevity, wealth, health, virtue and good death. Although in the past, wufuqiao was as busy as a city, but "Wufu" can only be a good wish of Weitian ancestors. Now, downstream of the old bridge, a new bridge has been flying parallel. The roaring vehicles, the rushing crowd, the busy of the new bridge and the silence of the old bridge are in sharp contrast. The bridge is the shoulder of the road, and the new bridge has replaced the old one, which holds the hope of Weitian people towards the new countryside.

As a witness of history, wufuqiao silently watches all the dynamic changes in the prosperous years.

It was rebuilt during the reign of Guangxu in Qing Dynasty. The bridge is well preserved, and the stone railings are neat. The so-called five blessings are happiness, Jubilee, longevity, wealth and good death. This is the folk's five pursuits and wishes for life. It is used on the bridge as a blessing for the bridge builders. I hope this bridge can bring people not only convenience, but also all kinds of auspiciousness that everyone hopes.

Address: Xitang ancient town, Jiashan County, Zhejiang Province

Longitude: 120.898275

Latitude: 30.944955

Tel: 0573-4564161; 0573-45

Chinese PinYin : Wu Fu Qiao