Tianfu Three Bridges

Tianfu Three Bridges

The Tianfu Three Bridges are a Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Tianfu Three Bridges are located at the northern end of Tianshui'an, Huaqiao Town, Kunshan City, Suzhou, stretching from east to west and consisting of three ancient bridges: Wanshou Bridge, Jufu Bridge, and Yongqing Bridge, dating from the Yuan Dynasty to the Republican era. Jufu Bridge is a single-arch stone bridge, while the other two are both single-span beam bridges.

Jufu Bridge was formerly known as "Fuying Bridge." It is located at the northern end of the market area of Tianshui'an Town, Huaqiao, Kunshan, Suzhou, stretching from east to west across the Handong River. Originally built in the eighth year of the Zhizheng era of the Yuan Dynasty (1348) and reconstructed in the twenty-fifth year of the Daoguang era of the Qing Dynasty (1845), it was funded through donations raised by local residents such as Zhou Wenming and Zhu Yuncheng. This is a stone arch bridge constructed with a mix of bluestone and granite, with its arch built using the method of segmental voussoirs laid side by side. The central keystone features an engraved Bagua (Eight Trigrams) relief, while the long tie stones are carved with lotus patterns. The name stone bears the inscription “Jufu Bridge.” On the inner eastern side of the arch, the text “Constructed in the twelfth month of the eighth year of the Zhizheng era of the Great Yuan Dynasty, on the auspicious day of Xinmao, by the donors Zhou Wenming and Zhu Yuncheng” is preserved. The characters are in regular script, engraved in double-line intaglio and arranged in three rows. The words “Fu” and “Ying” are carved at the two ends at the top of the arch. The bridge is 19 meters long, 2.6 meters wide, and 3.6 meters high.

Wanshou Bridge is located at the northern end of the market area of Tianshui'an Town, Huaqiao, Kunshan, Suzhou, stretching from north to south across the Zhichang Pond. It was originally built in the thirty-second year of the Qianlong era of the Qing Dynasty (1767) and restored in the twenty-fourth year of the Republican era (1935). This single-span beam bridge is made of granite, with a length of 16.7 meters, a width of 1.7 meters, and a span of 5.1 meters.

Yongqing Bridge is located at the northern end of the market area of Tianshui'an Town, Huaqiao, Kunshan, Suzhou, stretching from north to south across the Zhichang Pond. Built in the late Qing Dynasty, it is constructed of granite as a single-span beam bridge, measuring 10.3 meters in length, 1.4 meters in width, and 5.1 meters in span.

In March 2019, the Tianfu Three Bridges were announced by the provincial government as part of the eighth batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Huaqiao Town: A town under the jurisdiction of Kunshan City. It was known as Huaxi Township in 1949, renamed Huaqiao Township in 1956, changed to a commune in 1958, reverted to a township in 1983, and became a town in 1986. Located in the eastern part of the city, it is 15 kilometers from the urban center, covering an area of 50 square kilometers with a population of 32,000. It is traversed by the Shanghai-Nanjing Railway, the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway, and National Highway 312. Major waterways within its territory include the Wusong River, Jiming River, Wapu River, and Xugong River. The town administers Shang'an, Qixiang, Dongjing, Luxiang, Taojia, Xuejia, Zhaojia, Juyang, Zhoujing, Shitou, Sanxiang, Lisheng, Shunyang, Guxiang, Caocongjing, Xinhu, Xinmiao, Jian... For more detailed information about Huaqiao Town, click here++

Further Reading:

· Eighth Batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units