Yellow River waterwheel

Yellow River waterwheel

This entry is compiled and applied by "popular science China" Science Encyclopedia

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The Yellow River waterwheel is located in the Yellow River Bend, about 6 to 7 kilometers away from Shapotou. Waterwheel is an ancient irrigation tool along the Yellow River. Nowadays, most of them are eliminated, and the existing six giant water tankers are dedicated to tourists' enjoyment and entertainment.

Introduction to scenic spots

The Yellow River waterwheel is located in the Yellow River Bend, about 6 to 7 kilometers away from Shapotou. There are six wooden giant water tankers standing here. They are pounded by the river, slowly rotating day and night, and making a huge sound, which has aroused the infinite interest of tourists. Waterwheel is an ancient irrigation tool along the Yellow River. Nowadays, most of them are eliminated, and the existing six giant water tankers are dedicated to tourists' enjoyment and entertainment. The waterwheel, also known as the crown block, is more than 10 meters high, with 24 wooden spokes supported by a 5-meter long axle with a diameter of 0.5 meters, radiating around. There is a scraper and a bucket at the top of each spoke. Scrape with scraper and fill with bucket. The river water rushed in, slowly turning the more than ten ton water truck by the water potential, and each bucket was filled with water, and the river water was lifted up step by step. Near the top, the bucket tilts naturally again, pouring water into the aqueduct and flowing into the irrigated farmland. The waterwheel on the Bank of the Yellow River rotates day and night, adding infinite scenery to the Yellow River.

The surging water of the Yellow River flows continuously from west to East, and the waterwheel, just like the Pearl Zan of the Yellow River mother, has been passed down on both sides of the Yellow River for thousands of years with its unique style.

Water conservancy function

For hundreds of years, the world has gone through vicissitudes. In addition to the original main function of drainage irrigation, the waterwheel has added rich tourism connotation. The waterwheel we saw was rebuilt in 1999 for the development of stone forest tourism. The waterwheel has 48 buckets, 36 spokes, 7.8 meters from the axis to the ground, and 8 meters in diameter. It uses the water flow to push the hanging board to drive the waterwheel to rotate slowly, and the water is flowing The bucket is filled with water in turn and slowly rises. When it reaches the top, the mouth of the bucket is facing down. Pour the water into the palm pan and then enter the sink to drain the canal.

The Yellow River waterwheel is an important part of the Yellow River culture, which embodies the creativity of the Chinese nation and provides a witness for the study of Chinese agricultural civilization and water conservancy history. The invention of the waterwheel laid the foundation for the people to live and work in peace and social harmony and stability.

Historical evolution

Waterwheel is also known as "crane", "overturning car" and "tiger car". For its origin, we should start from the Jiajing period of Ming Dynasty. In the second year of Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty (1523 AD), Duan Zitan, a native of Lanzhou, became a Jinshi in Duan's further examination. When he was the censor of Taoism in Yunnan Province, he once toured several provinces in the south of China and had many favorable policies. Once in the countryside, he found that the wooden keel tube car could draw water for irrigation. He observed the principle of its structure and drew a picture to take with him. Later, when he returned to his hometown, he studied it carefully and practiced it repeatedly. Finally, in 1556, he successfully developed the first round of waterwheel in history. At that time, it was located outside Guangwu gate in today's Lanzhou City and named it "waterwheel garden". Soon, farmers on both sides of the Yellow River vied with each other to imitate it. It was popular for a while, and Longwan people were unwilling to lag behind. They imitated the two waterwheel we see now, although they were rebuilt later, But it still retains many characteristics of ancient waterwheel.

Lanzhou waterwheel was created by duanxu of Lanzhou in Ming Dynasty on the basis of absorbing and learning from the technology of Southern waterwheel. The water truck solves the difficulty of raising irrigation when the river bank is high and the water level is low, which greatly benefits the agriculture along the river. As a result, farmers along the banks of the Yellow River flocked to follow suit. In the Qing Dynasty, there were more than 300 water tankers on both sides of the Yellow River in Lanzhou, which became a unique cultural landscape on the Lanzhou section of the Yellow River. During the reign of Emperor Daoguang of the Qing Dynasty, the poet Ye Li wrote a poem: "the water wheel revolves from samsara, pouring snow and turning silver. Shixin Qinglian's verses are ingenious. The water of the Yellow River comes up from the sky. In the late Qing Dynasty, there was a water wheel in Lanzhou in the flood moon by Wen Xiaozhou, a landscape painter in Lanzhou.

In 1935, the Pingshi government money Bureau of Gansu Province issued a set of banknotes with Lanzhou scenery. One of the banknotes with a face value of 50 cents is based on the theme of water tankers. In the picture, three water tankers stand side by side on the red and yellow Bank of the Yellow River, tall and majestic, with great visual impact.

In 1938, Mr. Gu Jiegang, a famous historian, visited Xiaoxihu Lake in Lanzhou. He wrote: "there are flowers and trees in the garden, and beside the riverbank, the sound of water carts is rumbling. It's forbidden to talk about it in detail, and Lanzhou is the most popular place." In the 1930s, waterwheel was the theme of folk embroidery works in Lanzhou. Meng Shuzu wrote in "Northwest sidelights" published in 1943: "I have seen all the water tankers in Jiangnan, such as hand-operated water tankers, foot treading water tankers, cattle pulling water tankers, wind powered water tankers, and machine-made water tankers. I think that the water tankers used for bailing water and irrigating fields in China are all here. Now I know that Jiangnan is only a corner of China. Before, what I saw was only part of China, and it was too small. The waterwheel in the northwest was grand and great. " The northwest waterwheel here refers to the Yellow River waterwheel. By 1952, there were 252 water tankers on both sides of the Yellow River, but with the development of social economy, the water tankers on the Yellow River were basically replaced by modern water conservancy tools, and gradually disappeared from the Bank of the Yellow River.

The Yellow River waterwheel has been an agricultural irrigation tool in Lanzhou since it came out in the Jiajing period of Ming Dynasty (1556 AD). Since the 1950s, electric pumping irrigation has been gradually rising. More than 200 old water tankers in Lanzhou have been demolished and scattered because of their historical mission. Only Xiachuan village water tankers have been preserved. In 2001, after the 160 year old waterwheel was listed as a provincial cultural relic, Xiachuan villagers took it as the village's cultural heritage and tourism resources, and carefully maintained it. After stopping for four years, it turned again.

historical value

In recent years, with the development of tourism, only a few wheels of Lanzhou waterwheel have become precious historical relics. People not only draw and shine on waterwheel, but also make miniature waterwheel one after another. As tourist souvenirs, they are very popular with tourists. In order to carry forward the Yellow River culture, develop tourism resources and show the wisdom of the people of the Yellow River, Lanzhou municipal government built a comprehensive tourist attraction, waterwheel Park, for seven years. In the near future, Lanzhou waterwheel Grand View Garden was built to reproduce the style of "waterwheel city" in the past. At that time, six groups of 12 wheelers will stand on the Bank of the Yellow River and become a new highlight of Lanzhou.

developing process

The first stage

The first stage of waterwheel development. The waterwheel in China's official records did not appear until the Eastern Han Dynasty. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Emperor Ling ordered Bi LAN to build a "overturned car" with basic devices such as wheel axle slot plate. It is also said that the Wei people and horses also made overturning cars during the Three Kingdoms period (notes by Pei Songzhi, biography of Du in Volume II, Wei Zhi of the Three Kingdoms). No matter who initiated the rollover, in short, the formal emergence of rollover from the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Three Kingdoms can be regarded as the first stage of the establishment of Chinese waterwheel.

The second stage

The second stage of waterwheel development. In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the development of waterwheel made great progress in the application of wheel axles. It was able to make use of hydraulic power and made a "bobbin car". With the help of water tank and connecting cylinder, it can make low water and high water delivery. Not only more effective, but also save valuable manpower. Zhang Xiaoxiang of the Southern Song Dynasty praised it in his poem entitled "poems on the wall of Nengren courtyard": "turn this great wheel of Dharma to save you from drought and suffering. It can be seen that the waterwheel is of great help to farming. This is the second stage of the development of water tankers in China.

The third stage

The third stage of waterwheel development. In the yuan and Ming Dynasties, the development of wheel axles was more advanced. A waterwheel not only has one set of gears, but also has up to three sets. It has "water turning overturning", "cattle turning overturning" or "donkey turning overturning", which can be used interactively according to the wind and land potential. This development makes the use of rollover more efficient. Since it was invented in the Eastern Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period, it has been stagnant in the operation of human resources. At this point, the use of water and animal power as the driving force, so that the human force is finally liberated from the rollover pedal. At the same time, due to the development of rotating shafts, vertical wheels, horizontal wheels and so on, the original only hydraulic drive of the drum car, even in less abundant water areas, can also make use of animal power and contribute. In addition, there is the appearance of "high turn bobbin car". Where the terrain is steep and there is no way to open a reservoir, the water can be delivered from low to high, and the water can be developed. This is the third stage of the development of water tankers in China. After the yuan and Ming Dynasties, there were not many outstanding achievements in the development of Chinese waterwheel.

Waterwheel has made great contribution to China's agricultural development. It greatly alleviates the topographic constraints on farming and realizes the development of Hilly and hillside land. It is not only used to draw water during drought, but also can be used to drain water when there is water in the lower part.

Address: Shapotou District, Zhongwei City, 7 km away from Shapotou.

Longitude: 104.99455261231

Latitude: 37.430740356445

Ticket information: market price: 15.0 yuan

Chinese PinYin : Huang He Shui Che