Tingqiao Rainy Mist: Famous Bridge in Yangzhou

Author: Qiu Zhengfeng, Feng Hanguo / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-03-01
Features: A bridge is an artificial (elevated) passage. It consists of two parts: the superstructure and the substructure. The superstructure includes the bridge span and the deck system, while the substructure includes piers, abutments, and foundations. They soar high and rest low, with gentle curves, harmonious rhythms, and diverse, elegant forms. Some resemble dancing ribbons, dominating mountain valleys and wild landscapes, with a simple and refined charm. Others appear as if suspended in the air, crossing cliffs, gorges, and streams, enhancing the brilliance of mountains and rivers. Some, like dragons lurking in water, are located in bustling city streets, with ingenious designs. Others, resembling sleeping rainbows, serve multiple purposes with remarkable craftsmanship.
Endowed with the spirit of heaven and earth, they blend seamlessly with mountains and rivers, creating picturesque scenes that complement and enhance each other. Whether bathed in morning light or evening shadows, they display a myriad of moods, adorning the land of China. Regardless of wind and rain or scorching heat and freezing cold, they silently serve countless pedestrians and vehicles, crossing rivers and streams.
There are many ways to classify bridges. By usage, they are categorized as highway bridges, rail-road dual-use bridges, pedestrian bridges, agricultural bridges, and water-crossing bridges, among others. By span length and total multi-span length, they are classified as small bridges, medium bridges, large bridges, and super-large bridges. By the position of the carriageway in the superstructure, they are divided into deck-supported bridges, through-slung bridges, and deck-slung bridges. By the load-bearing method of the main structural components, they can be categorized as beam bridges, arch bridges, suspension bridges, and their composite systems (cable-stayed bridges, suspension bridges). By service life, they are classified as permanent bridges, semi-permanent bridges, and temporary bridges. By material type, they are divided into wooden bridges, masonry bridges, prestressed concrete bridges, steel bridges, and reinforced concrete bridges.
Ancient Chinese bridges were generally classified by the load-bearing method of the main structural components, primarily beam bridges, arch bridges, floating bridges, and cable bridges. Based on different construction materials and forms, these four types further evolved into wooden bridges, stone bridges, brick bridges, bamboo bridges, salt bridges, ice bridges, rattan bridges, iron bridges, reed bridges, stone-pier bridges, stone-abutment bridges, flood-crossing bridges, cantilever bridges, pavilion bridges, wind-and-rain bridges, bamboo-plate bridges, stone-plate bridges, opening-and-closing bridges, zip-line bridges, three-angled arch bridges, pointed-arch bridges, round-arch bridges, continuous-arch bridges, solid-arch bridges, flat-arch bridges, steep-arch bridges, rainbow bridges, irrigation canals bridges, curved bridges, towpaths bridges, and cruciform bridges, as well as rope walkways and flying pavilions, among others, nearly covering all possibilities.
China has abundant mountains and rivers, making it a major country for bridges. In ancient times, both in bridge construction technology and in the number of bridges, China was at the forefront of the world. For thousands of years, bridges have become an indispensable part of people's lives. To this day, countless bridges still stand across the land, playing a significant role.
Yangzhou, located in the water-rich region of southern Jiangnan, has historically been a city connecting the Yangtze River, the Huai River, the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, and the East China Sea. With dense rivers and numerous lakes, its dazzling array of bridges has earned it the reputation of a "City of Bridges." The enigmatic Twenty-Four Bridges, the Yangtze River Bridge where the Tang Dynasty envoys anchored, the cultural altar of Wenjin Bridge, and the Grand Rainbow Bridge, which inspired thousands of poems and literary gatherings, as well as the Five Pavilion Bridge with its golden lotus blossoms, hold a unique place in Chinese bridge history in both construction technology and cultural heritage. They tell stories of the wisdom and legends of ancient laborers, as well as the ups and downs they have witnessed.
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