Shuiyang River Water Stakes

Shuiyang River Water Stakes

The Shuiyang River Water Stakes are a Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

In Zhuanqiang Town, Gaochun District, Nanjing, there is a rare ancient water conservancy facility for embankment protection and flood control — the renowned Shuiyang River Water Stakes (jiàn). The numerous, large-scale, and well-preserved water stakes built along the Shuiyang River in Zhuanqiang Town during the Ming Dynasty are hailed as a rare ancient hydraulic structure for embankment protection and flood prevention. Having stood in the water for over 600 years, they block and divert floodwaters, and were upgraded to a Jiangsu Provincial-level cultural relics protection unit in 2011.

The water stakes in Xiangguo Weir, Zhuanqiang Town, were discovered during the third national cultural relics survey in recent years. Located on the riverside side of the southeast embankment of the Shuiyang River at the border between Gaochun County in Jiangsu and Xuancheng City in Anhui, these structures were built to prevent floods from the mountainous regions of southern Anhui from directly impacting the Xiangguo Weir embankment. Surveyors found nine earth-and-stone built water barriers within a 7-kilometer stretch from Shuibiqiao in the north to Dahuatang in the south. All are situated at river bends, spaced approximately 150 to 200 meters apart, which is why locals refer to them as the “Nine Stakes and Eight ??”.

Since the Spring and Autumn period when the State of Wu built the Xiangguo Weir, it has been hit by major floods many times throughout history. Especially since the Ming Dynasty, after the construction of Dongba Dam and the rise in water levels of the three lakes, the Xiangguo Weir has managed to avert disaster and safely pass through flood seasons. Aside from the solid structure of the embankment itself, the water stakes and earthen barriers outside the Shuiyang River section of the Xiangguo Weir have played a significant role.

On December 19, 2011, the People's Government of Jiangsu Province announced it as part of the seventh batch of Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units