Guanghui Bridge

Guanghui Bridge

Guanghui Bridge is a cultural relic protection unit of Huzhou City.

Guanghui Bridge is located near the Town Silk Industry Guild Hall, spanning the Nan Shi River. Legend has it that after Zhang Shicheng led a peasant uprising at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, he occupied the Guanghui Palace here as his temporary imperial residence. The bridge was situated in front of the palace, hence its name. Since Zhang Shicheng was a leader of the peasant uprising at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, the bridge is also known as Zhangwangmiao Bridge. In March 1989, it was listed as a cultural relic protection unit of Huzhou City.

This bridge is a single-arch stone structure. Its original construction date is unknown, but it was renovated in the fifth year of the Jiaqing reign of the Qing Dynasty (1800) and rebuilt in the fifth year of the Tongzhi reign (1866). The bridge is 18 meters long, 3.3 meters wide, with an arch rise of 13 meters. There are 24 steps on both the upper and lower sides, and the arch ring stones were laid using the method of longitudinal jointing with separate sections arranged in parallel.

In front of Guanghui Bridge stands a pair of exquisitely crafted stone lions, originally from the Silk Industry Guild Hall. The lions are divided into a male and a female. The male lion holds a cub in its arms, which looks adorable and lifelike; there is also a hollow embroidered ball in the male lion’s mouth.

These stone lions appear almost like bas-reliefs with a strong three-dimensional effect. Notably, each lion has a stone bead in its mouth that can be turned but not removed. According to elders in Nanxun’s silk industry, it took three generations of stonemasons a total of three years to complete the work, making it the final masterpiece of the master stonemason and a piece of art with significant cultural preservation value.

Nanxun Town: Nanxun is a prosperous and culturally vibrant ancient town in the Jiangnan region. Its geographical coordinates are between 120°25’–120°26’ east longitude and 30°52’–30°53’20” north latitude. Located by Taihu Lake and bordering Suzhou, it serves as the eastern gateway for Huzhou to connect with Shanghai’s Pudong area. The Changhu-Shen railway line and National Highway 318 run through the town, giving it a superior geographical environment and convenient water and land transportation. The town covers a total area of 141.3 square kilometers, governs 51 administrative villages and 10 residential communities, with a total population of 116,000 and cultivated land area of 122,500 mu. In 2000... More details about Nanxun Town++