Suzhou Fenghuang Bridge

Suzhou Fenghuang Bridge

Suzhou Fenghuang Bridge is a Suzhou Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Suzhou Fenghuang Bridge is located on Wangxiang Port (also known as Dixi) in Wangxiang Village, Taiping Subdistrict, Xiangcheng District, Suzhou City. It is an ancient single-arch Wukang stone beam bridge, measuring 17.2 meters in length, 2.6 meters in width, and 3.4 meters in height. The main components are made of dark reddish-brown Wukang stone, which originates from Wukang County in Zhejiang Province and was used as a building material prior to the Song and Yuan dynasties. The Wukang stone beams are sturdy, 0.82 meters wide and 0.50 meters thick, with each end carved with a set of exquisitely detailed scrollwork patterns. The lines are smooth and the carving technique is highly skilled. Inscriptions are engraved in the middle of the stone beams: the western beam reads “Established by the Wang family of Taiyuan near the creek,” while the eastern beam, due to weathering, has faded characters and some parts patched with cement. Upon close inspection, it reads “Built in the final year of the Fenghuang Bridge.” The inscriptions record the surname of the bridge builder, the name of the bridge, and the year of construction. On the long tie stones beneath the beams, there were originally wooden beam protectors at each end, but the wood has now rotted away, leaving only the mortise holes.

In March 1986, Fenghuang Bridge was listed as a Cultural Relics Protection Unit of Wu County, and in 1995, it was designated as a Suzhou Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Unit.