Luxu Guanyin Bridge

Luxu Guanyin Bridge

The 1747 *Fenhu Annals* record that Guanyin Bridge was originally named Taisheng Bridge, but its construction date is unknown. In 1770, local scholars including Wu Zhimei raised funds to rebuild Taisheng Bridge. The bridge has now stood for 240 years, making it the oldest surviving ancient bridge in Luxu and still in good overall condition. During the Qing Dynasty, a small shrine was built against the abutment’s retaining wall on the northwest side. The shrine enshrined statues of Guanyin and Guan Yu, hence the bridge’s common name, Guanyin Bridge. The shrine was demolished in 1959.

Guanyin Bridge spans the northern mouth of Shih River, with Du Ziwei to the west and Dang Ziwei to the east (Dang Ziwei lies between Shih River and Hou River). It is a single-arch stone bridge, 2.2 meters wide at the top, with an arch rise of 3.2 meters. The arch is built with a continuous vertical joint technique. The stairways on the east and west sides have 18 and 17 steps respectively, their stones worn smooth over time. The bridge’s coping features unique stone lion carvings—the only surviving examples on Luxu’s ancient bridges. Male lions in nature have large heads, broad faces, muscular builds, and loud roars, making them fiercer than tigers or leopards and the true “kings of beasts.” The *Book of Han: Treatise on the Western Regions* records that in 84 AD, during the reign of Emperor Zhanghe of the Eastern Han, the King of Parthia (in the Iranian Plateau) sent envoys to present lions. The stone lions on Guanyin Bridge come in male-female pairs, facing each other. The left lion is male, its front right paw stepping on a ball—known as “lion rolling the embroidered ball,” symbolizing world conquest. The right lion is female, cradling a cub—known as “grand tutor and junior tutor,” symbolizing prosperity in offspring. The carvings capture the lions’ traits: broad foreheads, curly manes, flat noses, strong muscles, the embroidered balls beneath their paws, and the colorful ribbons and copper bells around their necks, adding a lively charm. Sadly, during the Cultural Revolution, the lions were coated in cement (now cleaned), and the northeastern coping lion is now missing.

Due to weathering of the granite over time, the bridge’s name on the lintel, the couplets on the spandrels, and the inscriptions on the arch stones have become illegible. This is partly due to the environment: for over 200 years, the bridge has been in a densely populated urban area, where harmful smoke and moisture have accelerated the erosion of the granite, blurring the carvings. Many steps are loose or displaced. On the north side, wild pomegranate trees and shrubs grow from the upper joints of the retaining wall, their lush foliage and autumn fruits creating a picturesque scene like an aerial bonsai.

Guanyin Bridge is a protected cultural heritage site under the control of Wujiang City (County).

Source: Wujiang Archives Bureau