Huihe Stone Arch Bridge

Huihe Stone Arch Bridge

The Huihe Stone Arch Bridge is a cultural relic protection unit of Henan Province.

The Huihe Stone Arch Bridge is located on the Little Huihe River in Peicheng Village, Peicheng Town, approximately 25 kilometers northwest of Yancheng County, Henan Province. This area was historically a junction point for east-west and north-south post roads.

The Huihe Bridge is built from red sandstone shale. It measures 8.3 meters in length from east to west and 6.47 meters in width from north to south, with a clear span of 2.92 meters for the arch. The arch consists of 18 parallel voussoirs. Aside from two raised concentric rings, the facing stones of the arch are plain. The space between the arch ring and the foundation is filled with raw iron and adhesive. The bridge foundation on both sides of the arch is reinforced with stone rollers. The bridge deck is paved with bluestone slabs. Originally, there were four bluestone railings and three bluestone panels on each side of the bridge, but only two complete railings and one complete panel remain today. The stone panels measure 1.65 meters in length, 0.7 meters in width, and 0.12 meters in thickness, featuring motifs such as “Qilin Gazing at the Sun (or Moon)” and “clouds in the shape of the character 人 (person),” all carved in vivid and lifelike detail. The bridge railings and panels differ in architectural style from the main arch, which dates back to the Northern Song Dynasty, and instead exhibit characteristics of Ming Dynasty architecture, suggesting they were added during a Ming-era renovation. The Peicheng area where the Huihe Bridge is located is a historic town, historically known as Huiqu Town.

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units of Henan Province