What is the history of covered bridges?

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Taishun covered bridge occupies an important position in the history of bridges in the world, including Sixi Sister Bridge and Sanjiao Bridge. Its long history of development and profound cultural precipitation attract attention and occupy an important position in the development of Chinese and foreign cultures.

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Taishun, covered bridge, history, culture and status

Speaking of covered bridges, people often think of the American movie The Bridges of Madison County and the famous covered bridge "Pig Back Bridge" in the movie. Indeed, this film calls for people's attention and love for the "covered bridge", a bridge architectural art. Since ancient times, "covered bridge" has a very long history and wide application in the history of architecture and landscape design at home and abroad. Especially in China, it has a history of about 2,000 years, and the "covered bridge" was recorded as early as the Han Dynasty. Zhejiang Taishun, also known as the "hometown of covered bridges", has more than 200 ancient covered bridges. Taishun is a mountainous county in the south of Zhejiang Province. In history, many celebrities and wise men moved to Taishun, a mountainous and inaccessible "Xanadu", in order to avoid disasters and chaos, and created local civilization with mountain and rural characteristics, leaving extremely precious historical and cultural heritage. Taishun covered bridge is one of the most outstanding representatives.

I. Overview of Taishun Covered Bridge

There are a large number of civil bridges in Taishun with various structural types. According to Taishun traffic records, by the end of 1987, there were 958 bridges in the county, with a total length of 16829 linear meters, of which 476 bridges were built before liberation, with a total length of 7923 linear meters. There were more than 30 covered bridges in Ming and Qing Dynasties, including covered bridges, Mu Ping covered bridges and Shigong covered bridges. Among them, there are six covered bridges that occupy an important position in the history of bridges in the world, namely Sixi Sisters Bridge, Sankui Xuezhai Bridge, Xianju Bridge, Shinohara Wenxing Bridge and Santiao Bridge.

Wooden arch bridge, the wood is very short, criss-crossing, like a rainbow flying over the wide water. Its ingenious structure is amazing! In the 1970s, a famous bridge expert, Mr. Mao Yisheng, organized scientists to conduct on-the-spot investigation and comparative study on the stoplog arch bridge in southern Zhejiang, and determined that a large number of stoplog arch bridges remaining in the mountainous areas of southern Zhejiang were Hongqiao structures prevailing in the Central Plains during the Northern Song Dynasty. In the book "Technical History of Ancient Bridges in China" edited by Mao Yisheng, four Taishun wooden arch bridges are recorded. Taishun Covered Bridge is famous all over the world, because its structure is very similar to the Hongqiao in the Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival painted by Zhang Zeduan in the Northern Song Dynasty. Because it forms an arch bridge with beams and wood interspersed with different pressures, it looks like a rainbow and is named Hongqiao. It occupies a high position in the history of Chinese bridges, and is called the four ancient bridges in China together with Anji Bridge in Zhaoxian County, Hebei Province, Wan 'an Bridge in Quanzhou and Guangji Bridge in Haiyang, Chaozhou. Three of the bridges are still preserved in the world, while the Bianshui Hongqiao is only in the painting. Now, Taishun has discovered a covered bridge similar to Hongqiao structure, which has attracted worldwide attention.

Second, Taishun covered bridge representative

1, North Building Bridge

Beijian Bridge, a stoplog arcade bridge, is located in Xiaqiao Village, sixi town. It was founded in the 13th year of Kangxi (1674), in the 8th year of Jiaqing (1803) and rebuilt in the 29th year of Daoguang (1849). The bridge is 51.7m long, 5.37m wide and 29m clear span. Beijian Bridge spans Beixi River, with reasonable overall structure and magnificent momentum. The bridge house is covered with gray tiles and red bodies, with eaves and walls, surrounded by ancient trees, and the two rivers meet under the bridge. Castle peak, clear water, Hongqiao and ancient trees complement each other to form a charming landscape painting.

There are many commercial shops at the bridgehead of Beijian River, which are the business places of villagers. There used to be a stage on the east side of the bridge. According to local customs and habits, at the beginning of the year, villagers will make a wish at Linshuitang and Chendaweng Palace, praying for the gods to bless the bumper harvest and family reunion. Make a wish at the end of the year, and carry the statues of Chen XIV and Chen Dawang to the stage of Beijianqiao to watch the play. This activity lasted for four days.

The north bridge with beam structure is full of momentum, and the bridge building is also an important part carefully built by the craftsmen of the covered bridge. Building a gallery on the arch increases the pressure on the bridge arch and makes it more stable. It also plays a role in preventing wind and rain. At the same time, the artistic treatment of various parts of the bridge house, such as the diversification of eaves and roof decoration, has increased the overall aesthetic effect of the bridge.

2. Dong Xi Bridge

Dongxi Bridge, a stoplog arcade bridge, is located in Xiaqiao Village, sixi town. It was founded in the fourth year of Ming Dynasty (1570) and located in Qin Long. Ten years of Qing dynasty (1745). Daoguang was rebuilt in the seventh year (1827). The bridge is 41.7m long, 4.86m wide and 25.7m clear span. Dong Xiqiao, who is in the feng shui mode of "general teasing lion", said that "the rainbow is full of gas and the shadow shakes the moon". There are 15 galleries on the arch of the bridge, and several of them are pavilions. The eaves are flying with wings, and the roof is surrounded by green dragons, which is quite smoky.

Dong Xi Bridge is about a mile from Beijian Bridge, so it is named because it crosses Dongxi. On the other side of the bridge is a distant mountain, and there are two higher peaks nearby, one is Lion Peak and the other is General Peak. According to the local people, the bridge and its surroundings are in the geomantic mode of "general teasing lion". Against this distant mountain, the Dong Xi Bridge looks more beautiful and light.

3. Three Bridges

Three bridges are located on the stream at the junction of Zhou Ling Township and Yangxi Township. Named after the original three giant trees crossed the river as a bridge, it was built on September 13th in the 7th year of Shaoxing in Song Dynasty (1 137) and rebuilt in the 23rd year of Qing Daoguang (1843). This is a wooden covered bridge with stoplogs and arches. It is 26.63 meters long and 4 meters wide, which is 10 meters above the water level. In the Ming Dynasty, there were 65,438+065,438+0 bridge houses with five columns and five beams, with arch-shaped support for the stigma and petal heads of butterfly lotus. This bridge originated earlier. According to Taishun's Record of Dividing Xinjiang, the old tile of "Zhenguan" in Tang Dynasty was discovered during the construction of Daoguang Room, which is the earliest bridge recorded in the county literature. This bridge is exquisite and beautiful with a long history. It was included in "China Ancient Scientific and Technological Achievements" and publicized as a series of hundreds of patriotic education books, showing the intelligence and wisdom of the working people in our county and the brilliant achievements in the construction of ancient bridges. 1982 was listed as the first batch of cultural relics protection units in Taishun County.

4. Xuezhai Bridge

Xuezhai Bridge in Sankui Town, located in Xuenei Village in Sankui Town, was built in Xianfeng for six years (1856). It is a stoplog arch-wood covered bridge with a total length of 5 1 m, a width of 5. 1 m, a single span of 29 m, a water height of 10.5 m, a bridge head slope of 30 m and fifteen bridge houses. 1986 Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau allocated funds, and the masses raised funds for reconstruction. 1988 was listed as the third batch of cultural relics protection units in Taishun County.

5. Yongqing Bridge

Yongqing Bridge in Xiaxiping Village, Zhanzhou, Sankui Town was built in the second year of Qing Jiaqing (1797), with a total length of 33 meters, a width of 4.5 meters and a height of 8 meters above the water. It is a cantilever beam type wooden covered bridge, with blue stone piers, two layers of cantilever beams intersecting at right angles at the top and sidewalk boards on the surface. There are 12 covered rooms with two floors. 1994 was listed as the fourth batch of cultural relics protection units in Taishun County.

Third, the development history of Taishun covered bridge

Where did Taishun Woven Girder Wooden Arcade Bridge come from? For a long time, people thought that the beam-type wooden arcade bridge in China originated from the Song Dynasty, so it was naturally associated with a large number of people moving to Taishun and bringing the Central Plains culture. In other words, Taishun did not have a braided wooden covered bridge until the craftsmen crossed the mountain in the Song Dynasty. No one seems to doubt this view for a long time. Is the development of Taishun covered bridge as inferred?

Studying Taishun covered bridge, we can't forget the third bridge. Xia Suixiang, the former curator of Taishun Culture and Art Museum, discovered the records of Tang tiles found when the Qing Dynasty rebuilt three bridges more than ten years ago, and then found the tiles of Shaoxing in the Song Dynasty on the eaves of the three bridges. The records of Tangwa and the discovery of Songwa provide valuable material basis for studying the development history of the three bridges.

If it can be determined that "the history of the Third Bridge originated in the Tang Dynasty", then, is the Third Bridge in the Tang Dynasty the woven beam and wood arcade bridge? Obviously, this has not been answered in the affirmative. Zhang Jun, currently the curator of Taishun Culture and Art Museum, has been engaged in the research of covered bridges for many years. Zhang Jun holds a completely different view on the view that "lounge bridge with beams in the south was introduced from the north". Zhang Jun believes that the historical development of Taishun Covered Bridge is distinct. When the three bridges were rebuilt in the Qing Dynasty, the tiles of Zhenguan years in the Tang Dynasty were found. In recent years, through on-the-spot investigation, tiles engraved with the words of Shaoxing Seven Years in Song Dynasty (1 137) have been found on the bridge, and the ruins of the ancient bridge in Tang and Song Dynasties have also been found on the stone wall more than 10 meters upstream. Judging from the column hole structure of the site, it is similar to the wooden arch bridge structure in Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Since last year, Shen Wei, a mechanical expert of Shanghai Jiaotong University, and Liu Jie, an associate professor of Shanghai Jiaotong University who became attached to Taishun in his early years, have visited Taishun many times. It is through the investigation of covered bridges with different structures that they are looking for the development context of Taishun covered bridge. After on-the-spot investigation and a lot of verification, they think that Taishun covered bridge was not introduced from the north, but the product of local aborigines and the creation of local ancestors. Because at least in Taishun, there is a complete set of bridge types and a complete development system from beam bridge to covered bridge, but such a complete development system has not been found in the north. CCTV's "Exploration and Discovery" column also traces the origin of Taishun covered bridge. 200 1 10 CCTV Science and Education Channel made a "root-seeking" of Taishun's main surnames when it filmed the feature film Hongqiao Pursuit in Taishun. It turns out that when the Song Dynasty crossed south, none of the surnames moved from the northern Central Plains to Taishun. However, this is only the case of Taishun, and it is not excluded that other areas with covered bridges may have the possibility of northerners moving in when they moved south in the Song Dynasty. Therefore, the statement that "Taishun's covered bridge was introduced from the north" is just a guess, and the statement that "Taishun's covered bridge was created by local ancestors" has a detailed textual research basis. At the same time, bridge experts believe that due to frequent mountain torrents in Taishun, bridges with simple structures are easily washed away by water, and the accumulation of long-term bridge-building experience may also prompt local craftsmen to invent Hongqiao structure. In addition, according to experts' investigation, Taishun covered bridge is not the reappearance of Bianshui Hongqiao. As early as Hongqiao appeared on the bustling Bianshui River, Taishun covered bridges, such as the "New Moon Out of the Cloud", may have been born for hundreds of years or even longer.

Fourth, Taishun covered bridge culture.

Taishun covered bridge has a long history, which embodies the hard work and sweat of the ancient working people, and also flashes the wisdom and creation of the people. Taishun covered bridge is first-class from both scientific and artistic perspectives. Its firmness has made it stable on the river for hundreds of years, and its beauty has fascinated countless tourists.

Take the famous Sixi Sister Bridge as an example. The Dong Xi Bridge was built 434 years ago, and the north bridge has been built for 329 years. There is only a mile between the two bridges. Although the difference is a hundred years, it is said that it was built by Zhang Mentor in Jingning County. Both bridges are double arches (the upper arch is a square arch and the lower arch is a round nine arch), which form a stable bridge body by the mechanical principles of penetration, lap joint, split joint, support, jacking and extrusion. The arches at both ends are supported on the abutments at both sides with granite bricks stacked on the cliffs on both sides, and the two arches of the bridge are also supported with triangular wooden frames to strengthen the lateral force. In order to prevent wind and rain erosion, this extremely delicate and ingenious structure, bridge experts believe that there is no dummy wood in many wooden beams, and each one has its role. The ancients used this trigonometry principle to build the covered bridge, so the main part did not need nails and tenons. It seems simple, but they have withstood the test of typhoons and flash floods for three or four hundred years and are still safe and sound. This is the greatest science. In addition, when the water is low, the horizontal average of the two bridges is only a few meters away. When mountain torrents broke out, three streams in the east, south and north merged in the middle of "Upper Jiang Yang". At this time, the water surface was flat, which offset the momentum of running water and greatly reduced the risk of bridge collapse. This is also the embodiment of the wisdom of the ancients. As far as appearance is concerned, the bridge built in the north is like a rainbow, with gray tiles and red bodies, cornices and cornices, ancient trees beside the bridge, and two rivers meet under the bridge. Castle peak, clear water, Hongqiao and ancient trees complement each other to form a charming landscape painting. Dongxi Bridge, on the other hand, has rainbows and shadows, and there are 15 corridors on the arch of the bridge, several of which are pavilions. The eaves are flying with wings, and the roof is surrounded by green dragons, which is quite smoky. This magnificent trend is a model of China's national culture, which is completely different from the covered bridges in the West.

In addition, the culture of Taishun covered bridge is also reflected in its simple folk customs. The covered bridge is a place for local villagers to rest and exchange transactions. For example, the stalls of the North Bridge are equally divided, and you can imagine the bustling scene of Wuma Street in Wenzhou that year. The bridgehead forms a small shop street, the first floor is a shop, and the second floor is for the owner to live in, which is definitely the most expensive place to rent. According to local elders, puppet shows used to be staged at the bridgehead of the North Bridge, and thousands of spectators gathered at the other end. Covered bridges generally have shrines for villagers to sacrifice. Some are not in the bridge building, but on the side or facing the bridge head. The objects of sacrifice are Buddhist missions, such as Guanyin Bodhisattva, door gods Shen Tu and Lei Yu, Weichi Gong and Qin Qiong, the former God of Heaven in the United States, Emperor Wenchang who can bring good luck to scholars and Zhao Gongming, the god of wealth who can help people get rich. There are also some well-known local people, such as Mrs. Chen Fourteen, Ma Xiangu and Wang Zhonglie. In addition, it also worships the legendary miscellaneous gods and demigods who are in charge of all aspects of real life. Sacrifice can be made on the first and fifteenth day of each month, and the first month of each year is the most solemn period of sacrifice. The villagers gathered on the bridge from all directions, put a whole pig's head on it, added two dishes of seasonal fruits, inserted some incense and kowtowed to pray.

Verb (abbreviation of verb) Present situation of Taishun covered bridge

Covered bridges are characterized by practicality, appreciation and artistry. It not only plays the role of crossing the river, but also provides many other functions, such as scenery, sightseeing, shelter from the rain and enjoying the cool. In the design of classical gardens in China, there are many uses and references, just like the waterscape construction of many classical private gardens in the south of the Yangtze River. It gives us more beautiful enjoyment. It is no exaggeration to say that "covered bridge" is a treasure in the history of ancient architectural landscape design. Taishun can be praised as "the hometown of covered bridges in the world" by the world bridge experts because the ancient covered bridges here are the best in the world in terms of quantity, preservation quality, construction history and artistic value.

Taishun covered bridge has a long history and profound cultural heritage. The craftsmen of Taishun ancient covered bridge "cut huge trees on the mountain and build covered bridges under the mountain" and made bold innovations with rigorous techniques and extraordinary wisdom. Through continuous exploration and practice, they finally created a beam-beam wooden arcade bridge without columns, which changed the dilemma of "Linchuan is involved in illness" and added a sense of calmness and confidence to people when crossing the river.

refer to

How many storms are there on the covered bridge?

Covered Bridge-Overview of Covered Bridge

Cutting down trees on the mountain and building a covered bridge under the mountain —— The development of Taishun covered bridge

Don't let the covered bridge become a dream.

Unique Sisi Bridge in the World

Exploration on the development of Taishun covered bridge

Taishun covered bridge: all kinds of customs are in one.